Geno Auriemma and Mark Few are two of the most accomplished college basketball coaches of all time. UConn’s Auriemma and Gonzaga’s Few have known each other for a long time, thanks to Nike-sponsored events, and have formed a strong friendship.
In 2023, while speaking on What Drives Winning, Auriemma recalled a wild night out that he had with Few and others in Cabo. Coach Geno said that Few is a “lowkey guy” usually, but that one particular night out was memorable for many reasons.
“We were in Cabo one time, and we had a great night out. We started out with four or five, and we came back with two or three; I don’t know what happened to the other two guys,” Auriemma said.
Other than the fun they had in Cabo, Coach Geno said that he has always admired Few’s work with Gonzaga.
“I’ve just always admired how he does his thing and how he doesn’t take himself too seriously. Year in and year out.”
Few has been with the Gonzaga Bulldogs since 1989. He started as a graduate assistant. The following year, he was promoted to the rank of assistant coach. In 1999, he took over as the head coach of the program.
During his tenure, the Bulldogs have been to the NCAA Division I regional Final Four twice, in 2017 and in 2021. He has also won the WCC tournament a record 20 times. Few has also won several coach of the year titles, including two from Naismith and 14 in the WCC.
Geno Auriemma revealed what the most impressive thing about Mark Few is
Auriemma admires Few’s dedication to building the program, and he appreciates everything he has done for the Bulldogs. His accomplishments become even more impressive when you put everything in context, as Auriemma did during their conversation.
“The most impressive thing I think about Mark is he was at Gonzaga when everybody said, you don’t want to play Gonzaga because they’re the big upstart team. And he was a certain way, exactly the way he is now, and now Gonzaga is the number one team in the country.”
“So, they’ve gone from that upstart team that you don’t want to play to now they’re the favorite to win a national championship. And from my perspective, he hasn’t changed one bit, not one iota. And I really, really admire him for that.”
Now, there can be different meanings of success for different people. One might look at Few’s resume and point out that he hasn’t won an NCAA title yet in his nearly three-decade run as the head coach.
However, building a program from the ground up and getting recognized by someone like Auriemma is not something that can be brushed to the side. Few deserve to be recognized as one of the best college basketball coaches of all time.
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