UConn Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma and late Tennessee Volunteers tactician Pat Summitt had a fierce rivalry at one time. Their programs became powerhouse names that dominated women’s college basketball in the 2000s and 2010s, including several NCAA Final Four appearances, national championships, and a long list of memorable matchups.
As per a 2019 report by Michael Voepel of ESPN, Auriemma spoke out on his rift with Summitt over UConn’s recruiting methods in June 2007, when their rivalry was in full swing. For a rivalry that started in 1995, this particular moment may have been the peak of their dislike for one another.
After dominating the early 2000s with several records and national title berths, coach Summitt and the Volunteers decided to cancel their annual series with Auriemma and the Huskies in June of 2007, just months after winning that year’s national championship. Summitt didn’t give a reason for the decision, but said that coach Auriemma already knows why.
“She hates my guts,” Auriemma was quoted as saying in 2007, as per Voepel’s report in 2019.
The animosity between the fan bases of both programs kept growing, as Auriemma and Summitt stayed focused on their game plans heading into the 2008-09 college basketball season. In June 2007 itself, however, reports surfaced that the Volunteers had complained to the SEC regarding the Huskies’ tactics when it comes to recruiting players from high school and in the transfer portal.
In April 2008, Auriemma hit back at Summitt, saying:
“She accused us of cheating. She just doesn’t have the courage to say it publicly. It doesn’t hurt me. Some people, that’s just their style, they’re passive-aggressive. Always wanting someone else to blame for what’s going on.”
There was no legal action taken by the NCAA on how UConn got its players, as they ended up with then-No. 1 recruit in the class of 2007, Maya Moore. However, the Huskies did arrange an ESPN studio tour for Moore in 2005, which they self-reported.
Moore went on to become the Huskies’ all-time leader in scoring with 3036 total points, while Pat Summitt and the Volunteers won the 2008 NCAA title, which was the legendary coach’s last one.
When Geno Auriemma and Pat Summitt Shared a Hug
In August 2011, Summitt was diagnosed with early-onset dementia-Alzheimer’s type. She died five years later in June of 2016 at 64 years old.
In March 2012, however, after she wrapped up her final game for the Volunteers as the head coach, Summitt attended the NCAA Final Four to watch Auriemma and the Huskies compete. Auriemma and Summitt famously shared a hug after that game.
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