UConn is motivated to make history, but nobody more so than Hurley

Dan Hurley has managed to not let UConn’s run get the better of him, staying dedicated and motivated in the moment while Huskies chase history. (Photo by UConn Athletics)

Last year, in the aftermath of guiding his UConn team to a successful defense of its national championship, Dan Hurley admitted the euphoria lasted maybe a week before fizzling out.

For Hurley, such a feeling is to be expected, as the coach was eager to simply get back to work and retool the Huskies into the force that they have become over the past 24 months. Months later, as UConn seeks to join UCLA as the only programs to win three straight titles, Hurley did not specify exactly how long the afterglow of cutting the nets lingered this time around, but he did revisit the road traveled to the perch he and his players occupy as they peer out over the vast frontier that is college basketball.

“It took the failure,” he reiterated, bringing to mind the recollections in Boston after last March’s East regional final. “We did a lot of things right: Culture check, defense, toughness. I think we ran a lot of good stuff on offense too, those years that we were early exit from the NCAAs and came up short in the Big East tournament and the regular season.”

“We were doing a lot of things great. We just weren’t championship-caliber because we had vulnerabilities in our attack. We had holes in our approach, most of them, I think, were roster construction. There were also the type of people, personality-wise, the pedigree.”

Since the early exits Hurley spoke of—Maryland in the 2021 NCAA Tournament, New Mexico State in 2022–the coach ramped up the aggression, fine-tuned the offense that now ranks among the more mystifying outfits in the sport. These modifications, he said, were necessary to complete the next step in UConn’s evolution into the terminator teams see now.

It left a lasting impression on a recruit from Southborough, Massachusetts, a 6-foot-8 wing with a knack for shooting and a desire to be the best.

“The day I met Coach Hurley on my visit, I knew that he was going to do special things,” Alex Karaban recalled. “It’s surreal what he’s done in this program and how he’s been able to change it so quickly, but at the same time it’s a blessing. It’s just what makes Coach Hurley so special too, the hunger, (that) he wants more, he recruits guys like myself and other guys that want more, too.”

Hurley admits he isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. In fact, he doesn’t shy away from it. What some see as histrionics is just natural reaction for someone who wears not only his heart, but his upbringing, on his sleeve. A proud Jersey City native, going so far as to credit his hometown in both of the Huskies’ national championship celebrations, Hurley again lauded the hamlet that reared him, praising the valuable lessons he learned not just on the floor, but in life.

“You grow up in New Jersey, North Jersey in particular, and it’s a culture of basketball,” he proudly shared. “It’s just great coaching, the coaches that you play for here…the Bob Hurleys, the Kevin Boyles, Hubie Brown, the people that have coached and played basketball in the state, and then the state’s blue-collar, it produces really tough people.”

“The place that I grew up is an incredibly diverse place, it’s a tough place. People are real with you. It’s not a fake place to grow up. If you’re doing bad, people tell you (that) you suck. If you’re doing great, they tell you (that) you’re doing well. It’s not a place where soft people come from. Tough people come from Jersey. You’re either tough, or you move.”

Some people tend to lose sight of their roots along the journey of life, through no fault of their own. Hurley’s ability to stay grounded and in the moment defies convention as the world around him becomes more convoluted. He does not try to do too much of one thing and not enough of another, and as the demands on his schedule increase, his ability to remain true to himself becomes something to behold as he spends the next five months in a unique and—in modern basketball—unprecedented position.

“I’m just a coach, man,” he said. “But I think the reason why we’ve been able to be as successful as we’ve been able to be is that even though I end up doing a lot more things and showing up at a lot more places in terms of media or things of that nature, I stay focused on recruiting. I stay focused on becoming a better coach, I stay focused on running my program. For me, I just try to focus on the day-to-day, just trying to make sure my program is at a championship level.”