(CNN)Hall of Fame men's college basketball coach Jim Boeheim has retired after spending the last 47 years coaching Syracuse University, the school announced on Wednesday.
The 78-year-old Boeheim finishes his coaching career second on the NCAA Division I men's basketball wins list with 1,015 -- trailing only former Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski.
In 1969, Boeheim was hired as a graduate assistant for the Orange and was later hired as head coach in 1976. Since then, the Boeheim-led team made the tournament 35 times including five Final Four berths. In 2003, Boeheim led the program to its first and only NCAA title.
"There is no doubt in my mind that without Jim Boeheim, Syracuse Basketball would not be the powerhouse program it is today," school Chancellor Kent Syverud said in a statement.
"Jim has invested and dedicated the majority of his life to building this program, cultivating generations of student-athletes and representing his alma mater with pride and distinction. I extend my deep appreciation and gratitude to an alumnus who epitomizes what it means to be 'Forever Orange.'"
Boeheim played basketball at Syracuse, joining the team as a walk-on in 1962. By his senior season, he was named captain of the team and helped earn the program its second-ever NCAA Tournament berth.
Boeheim's retirement comes following the Orange's last-second 77-74 loss to Wake Forest in the second round of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) tournament on Wednesday.
