Adrian Autry connects with Syracuse community at Apex Entertainment event
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT: Adrian Autry Connects with Syracuse Community at Apex Entertainment Event
Cam McGraw: Apex Entertainment, located inside Destiny USA, has all the regular features of an arcade. But today, there was a noticeable boost in traffic.
Niko McKela: When Syracuse beat Duke, at the Dome, like what 10 years ago, when the buzzer beater, that was probably my favorite game.
McGraw: Syracuse men’s basketball head coach Adrian Autry stopped by to meet fans and strengthen his connection with the community.
Adrian Autry: Great food, activities, TVs, it’s a great place to kind of spend your time together with friends and family.
McGraw: For people like Niko McKela, celebrating his 16th birthday, it was a different kind of jackpot.
McKela: I think it’s actually really cool, like just seeing all the basketball games I’ve been to and just now meeting him, it’s pretty cool.
McGraw: The “Ambassador Spotlight” was created by Rob Luzzi, the senior director of marketing at Apex, and he saw it as a chance to meet someone usually fans only see from afar.
Rob Luzzi: It’s really great to see people get up close and personal, spend a little quality time that they wouldn’t normally have.
McGraw: Beyond the event attendees, employees like Nick Apergies have formed long-standing connections with Autry.
Nick Apergies: Coach is just awesome for the community, seriously, even before he took over as the head coach, he was always getting involved, so he’s bringing people in here getting involved, getting to know people, I mean, he’s an awesome guy, you know.
McGraw: It’s a great opportunity for people here at Apex Entertainment like Nick and Rob, but for Coach Autry and the SU basketball team, the competition truly never stops.
Apergies: They are really competitive, I mean with all the teams I don’t know, I mean, between football and basketball, that basketball teams pretty intense, whenever I see them at the Syracuse shooting hoops arcade game we got over there I mean those guys are going at it they’re shooting deep from halfway in the arcade, they’re going deep.
McGraw: For Coach, the intensity never fades, even during his visits to Apex.
Autry: Well, we had a little competition. Right now, I’d probably say JJ Starling is the best at bowling. When we come here, we stay a long time, we get after it. I’m at the bottom, I’m at the bottom, I’m at the bottom, not at the bottom actually, I think I can beat Coach Strong, think I can beat him.
McGraw: From pop-a-shot to regulation hoops, the team keeps that same drive, turning competition into connection for Syracuse.
Cam McGraw, NCC News.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) — Apex Entertainment, located inside Destiny USA, has all the regular features of an arcade. But on this day, there was a noticeable boost in traffic and a familiar face behind it.
Syracuse men’s basketball head coach Adrian Autry stopped by to meet fans, pose for photos and strengthen his connection with the local community.
“Great food, activities, TVs, it’s a great place to kind of spend your time together with friends and family,” Autry said.
For fans like Niko McKela, celebrating his 16th birthday, it was a different kind of jackpot.
“When Syracuse beat Duke at the Dome, like what, 10 years ago, the buzzer beater, that was probably my favorite game,” McKela recalled.
“I think it’s actually really cool. Just seeing all the basketball games I’ve been to and now meeting him, it’s pretty cool,” he added.
The “Ambassador Spotlight” event was organized by Rob Luzzi, senior director of marketing at Apex. He saw it as a unique opportunity for fans to get closer to someone they usually only see from afar.
“It’s really great to see people get up close and personal, spend a little quality time they wouldn’t normally have,” Luzzi said.
Beyond the fans, Apex employees like Nick Apergies have also formed lasting connections with Autry through his community involvement.
“Coach is just awesome for the community, seriously,” Apergies said. “Even before he took over as head coach, he was always getting involved. He’s bringing people in here, getting to know them. He’s an awesome guy.”
The visit wasn’t all handshakes and smiles though; competition found its way into the mix, too.
It’s a great opportunity for people here at Apex Entertainment, like Nick and Rob. But for Coach Autry and the SU basketball team, the competition truly never stops.
Apergies agreed, saying the team’s intensity carries over even on a different court surface.
“They are really competitive. I mean, between football and basketball, that basketball team’s pretty intense,” he said. “Whenever I see them at the Syracuse shooting hoops arcade game, those guys are going at it, shooting deep from halfway across the arcade.”
And according to Autry, that competitive energy doesn’t fade outside the arcade either, but continues to the bowling alley.
“Well, we had a little competition. Right now, I’d probably say JJ Starling is the best at bowling,” Autry said with a laugh. “When we come here, we stay a long time, we get after it. I’m at the bottom, not at the bottom actually, I think I can beat Coach Strong. I think I can beat him,” he joked.
From pop-a-shot to regulation hoops, Autry and the Orange keep that same drive, turning competition into connection across the Syracuse community.