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Syracuse fan gets Jim Boeheim's face tattooed on his leg

Syracuse fan Rich Miner's new tattoo is a portrait of Jim Boeheim (photo via @KyleProiaTattoo)
Syracuse fan Rich Miner's new tattoo is a portrait of Jim Boeheim (photo via @KyleProiaTattoo)

It apparently wasn't enough for one Syracuse fan to merely buy tickets or merchandise to show his support for the Orange.

He wanted something a bit more permanent.

Rich Miner, a 28-year-old Syracuse native and lifelong Orange basketball fan, got a detailed black-and-white portrait of coach Jim Boeheim tattooed on his left calf Wednesday. The portrait of Boeheim is the work of Kyle Proia, a tattoo artist based in Baldwinsville, N.Y.

"I've always been a diehard Syracuse basketball fan for as long as I can remember. I've had season tickets for years, but recently I decided I really wanted to do something special," Miner said. I'm absolutely blown away with the result. I've never seen a tattoo look that photo-realistic with that much detail. I showed a couple of co-workers last night, and they said, 'It just looks like they put a sticker on you.'"

Syracuse fans on social media have been abuzz about Miner's tattoo since he posted a photo of it on Instagram Wednesday night. A Syracuse fan tweeted the picture to local radio host Brent Axe and local and national media outlets have picked up on it from there.

How did Miner choose this particular image for his tattoo? It was a no-brainer for him to pick Boeheim since the hall of fame coach has been the face of the Syracuse program for more than four decades. The bigger decision was whether to go with a modern-day image or a vintage shot of him wearing plaid.

"We were just looking up Jim Boeheim photos, and we narrowed it down to those two," Miner said. "I felt like this was the perfect picture to get done. Not many people would have recognized Boeheim in the plaid suit because people didn't follow college basketball then the way they do now."

Of course, Miner isn't the first fan to get a college hoops-inspired tattoo this offseason. When Willie Cauley-Stein chose to return to school for his junior season instead of entering the NBA draft, a Kentucky fan fulfilled his end of a bet by tattooing the 7-footer's face on his right calf.

The tattoo Miner chose is both more iconic and more artfully done than the Cauley-Stein one, but there is at least one person in his life who isn't a fan.

"Everyone is blown away by it, but my mom still is like oh tattoos, yada yada yada," Miner joked.

When it comes to tattoos, mom is always the hardest person to please.

 For more Syracuse news, visit CuseConfidential.com.

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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!