Welcome Home UCONN

When I was 10 years old I was introduced to something that still makes me happy and giddy to this day. It has brought me joy and happiness that you can never imagine. It was the sport of college basketball. That team was the UCONN Huskies. On that note Welcome Home UCONN.

Way back in 1990 UCONN wasn’t exactly a household name the way it might be now. My grandfather was a Huskies fan forever and he got me into watching them.

By chance, I happened to catch them in the ‘Dream’ season of 1990. No one expected them to do anything. In 1988 they won the NIT and in 1989 lost to UAB in the quarterfinals of the NIT.

Anyone in their right mind could have never imagined what was going to happen that year and what had changed my life forever. Growing up in Connecticut we didn’t have much to root for. The Whalers were all we had, and they were dreadful.

Coach Jim Calhoun took me on the magic carpet ride of my life that I am still riding to this day. I fell in love with the likes of blue-collar kids like Tate George, Chris Smith, John Gwynn, and Nadav Henefeld. Those aren’t household names, but if you are a fan you know who I’m talking about.

• 

There were playing in the mighty Big East conference that the huskies had played in since its inception in 1980. They had struggled up until the dream season in the Big East.

Fans in this state can tell you that they became alive and hungry for basketball when they beat Georgetown and Syracuse in a 2-week span and made this fan believe they were onto something special.

They finished the regular season at 12-4 and tied Syracuse for 1st place. Riding the momentum all the way to the Big East Tournament where they defeated Syracuse 78-75 to capture the school’s 1st Big East Conference and tournament title.

I thought they were good enough to win it all and they came oh so close. Remembering them play Clemson in the NCAA tournament was a roller coaster ride. Clemson rallied to take the lead with 1 second left.

Then the most amazing play that I have ever seen happened, which still gives me chills to this day. Scott Burrell throws a pass the length of the court where Tate George hit a corner jumper to beat the Tigers 71-70. I lost my voice that day and it took me a while to recover.

Christian Laettner broke my spirit a few days later when he hit a floater in the lane to send Duke to the Final Four. That was the beginning of college basketball for me and gave me hope that we could finally cheer for something amazing here in Connecticut.

Getting to watch most of the games with my grandfather made it all more special. We watched pretty much all the games together and we even went to a few games.

Winning Big East tournament titles in 1990, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2002, 2004, and 2011 seems like it was yesterday for me.

Trying to win them in Madison Square Garden was a challenge all in itself. The building still gives me chills to this day.

Winning their 1st championship in 1999 and the heartache of losing in the Elite 8 in 1995 to UCLA and in 1998 to North Carolina had all gone away from this jubilant fan. Richard Hamilton and Khalid El Amin were magnificent that night.

When UCONN beat Duke to win their 1st national title I cried my eyes out. I had never been overcome with that much joy in my life. This is what a school can do to you if you become a fan as long as I have.

Winning again in 2004 and 2011 was amazing to this die-hard fan. 2004 was expected with the talents of Ben Gordon and Emeka Okafor leading the way.

Kemba Walker and a bunch of kids carried them to a surprise title in 2011. If you have never seen Walker’s magical run in the last 5 games of the Big East and NCAA tournament look it up.

Playing in the Big East was like winning a prizefight. It was always exciting and a bump and grind. Then the school got the college football bug and it was all downhill from there.

College Football is a more lucrative sport than basketball. If you go to a bowl game you can make like 8 million dollars for your school. I’m not sure that UCONN ever got that it would never be a football school. They tried but it to this day it’s still behind.

Basketball suffered because of it. The Big East got raided because of football as well and they had to create a new conference called the AAC. (American Athletic Conference). Instead of playing Seton Hall and Pittsburgh they would be playing Central Florida and Tulane.

Joining this league never made sense to me and it seemed to not make sense geographically either. They were able to manage to win a National Championship in 2014 out of the AAC, so it wasn’t all bad.

Ever since Jim Calhoun retired it been an up and down ride. Kevin Ollie won a title in his second year, but its all gone downhill since then. He has since been fired. They haven’t had a winning season since 2016.

Recruiting and the landscape of college basketball has changed. UCONN used to seem to get a McDonalds All American and add stellar players to its class. Since moving to the AAC UCONN has struggled to bring in the recruits they used to. Playing in this league is a tough sell to kids.

Kentucky and Duke have taken over the world of recruiting, and UCONN playing in this league can’t catch up. When you can play North Carolina, Virginia, Florida, and LSU twice a year which school you think a kid would choose to play for?

When it was announced that the Huskies would be coming back to the Big East, this writer screamed at the top of his lungs.

Coach Danny Hurley ( who I love and who played at Seton Hall) runs the team now and has already seen a boost in recruiting.

I have taped every postseason and a few regular-season games a year since that magical run almost thirty years ago. I will keep those with me until the day that I die.

The Big East and UCONN over the last thirty years have made my dreams come true. Its given me heartbreak, nostalgia, and the love of a grandpa and his grandson. What more could you want? To welcome UCONN home.

My god am I ready for a new fresh start. UCONN is coming home my friends right where they belong, in Big East, welcome home sweet home UCONN.