Syracuse Basketball: Felisha Legette-Jack apologizes for language, calls for more NIL

I want to start off this column by saying that I'm a big, big fan of Syracuse women's basketball head coach Felisha Legette-Jack. She's got high character, she's kind, she's passionate, and she bleeds Orange without question.

Legette-Jack, a former standout player with the 'Cuse in the 1980s, guided the Orange to 24 wins a season ago, including a victory in the NCAA Tournament. In the 2023-24 campaign, she was named the Atlantic Coast Conference coach of the year.

The current term, though, has proven challenging so far. On Wednesday night, the 'Cuse lost to Albany, at home, on a late 3-pointer that dropped Syracuse basketball to 2-3 overall in the early goings of the 2024-25 season.

To be fair, the Orange's current roster is different than a campaign ago, with All-American Dyaisha Fair, a prolific scorer, and others gone from the Hill. Now, following the team's setback to Albany, Legette-Jack ripped into her squad as well as the 'Cuse fan base in her post-game press conference.

I understand Legette-Jack's frustrations. She, of course, wants her program to perform better. And she wants more fans to come to 'Cuse games and support Syracuse women's basketball. All of that is logical.

Her underlying message in the presser is fine. How she relayed this message, and some of the words she chose, I didn't like. On Thursday, though, Legette-Jack apologized for her using a profanity during an interview on the ESPN Radio Syracuse program "Orange Nation."

Syracuse women's basketball head coach Felisha Legette-Jack says her program needs more NIL.

Per an article from Brent Axe of Syracuse.com, the average attendance for the Orange at this juncture in the 2024-25 term is 2,187 fans a game, which ranks No. 43 nationwide.

Legette-Jack says that she appreciates those fans out there who are attending 'Cuse contests, but she's asking for more fans to come to her program's games.

"Sometimes when you home, you can talk like you from your city. I called my city out and I told them I need them. I know they coming. I know they are going to support me," she said to ESPN Radio Syracuse.

There is nothing wrong with Legette-Jack asking for more fans to attend her team's games. Not in the least. Now, her tone in that post-game presser on Wednesday evening wasn't great, but the message is still applicable.

I don't want to be a hypocrite here, either. I live near Baltimore, so it's tough for me to attend 'Cuse sporting events on a consistent basis that transpire in Central New York. This doesn't make me a bad fan, because I bleed Orange and love my alma mater, Syracuse University.

Certainly, as I interact with other fans on social media, there are plenty of SU fans out there who love Syracuse women's basketball. Some go to the games in person. Some do not. It is what it is.

In her radio interview on Thursday, Legette-Jack did touch on name, image and likeness. Per Axe's story, she said, “We definitely need more here. We certainly want more, I should say. But we certainly need to raise more money for my program so I can have the necessary situations. Name, image and likeness, we need to get more financial in that situation. We lost our best post player to Tennessee, Alyssa Latham, because we just didn’t have it. We couldn’t even get in the conversation for they were offering. We’d certainly like more positions for my staff. We’d like to be equal to the top 5 programs in our conference. We’re not there yet.”

This past March, Mark Hayes, the general manager of a commercial NIL collective supporting all 'Cuse sports, Orange United, told me at that time that his collective was targeting an NIL budget for Syracuse women's basketball in 2024-25 of around $1 million.