After hoping for a run to the Final Four this Spring, Jim Boeheim is now eyeing the Run for the Roses.

The Syracuse men's head basketball coach is part-owner of a horse named 'Hidden Stash' that has been selected to compete in the first leg of the Triple Crown, set for Saturday, May 1, in Louisville.

Adam Weitsman, owner of Upstate Shredding- Weitsman Recycling first purchased the horse, then gifted part-ownership to Coach Boeheim as a birthday gift, according to The Post Standard:

Weitsman is the majority stakeholder of Hidden Stash. He bought the horse for $50,000 along with BBN Racing, whose co-founders include Troy native Brendan O’Brien and Skidmore College alumnus Brian Klatsky. Braxton Lynch, a thoroughbred breeder in Kentucky, is also among the owners.

Weitsman told the Post Standard of his seemingly odd gift to Boeheim, 'He's a tough guy to buy gifts for.'

The Kentucky Derby is the first of the horse racing industries three premiere races, drawing widespread attention from those who don't fancy themselves as fans of the sport. The other Triple Crown events are The Preakness - set for May 15 at the Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore - and the Belmont Stakes - scheduled to first weekend in June, and held at Belmont Park in Elmont, NY.

The Post Standard also reported:

Hidden Stash last week was ranked 22nd on the Kentucky Derby’s leaderboard, but has enough points to move up to the top 20 horses for the derby after other horse owners pulled out.

Weitsman told the outlet that Hidden Stash's odds in the 20-horse field are about 20-1. However, as of this posting on Thursday afternoon at 3:00PM, WIBX was unable to find odds for Hidden Stash on a few major betting/odds-making websites.

Television coverage of the race on May 1 race can be found on NBC. The broadcast runs several hours and includes some other races from the track. The Kentucky Derby itself is set to step-off at 6:57PM.

Meanwhile, local harness horse racing track Vernon Down is set open for the season this weekend.

After an odd COVID-laden 2020-21 season, Boeheim's Syracuse Orange made a splash at the Big Dance last month, picking up two wins and earning a Sweet 16 appearance.

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