UConn women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma is successful, but his impression is one of a really hardcore coach who doesn’t take excuses. However, there’s also a soft spot in him for the players, which rarely comes to public notice.
During a conversation on ‘Overtime Select’ between Kaleena Smith and KK Arnold, the latter spoke about “one thing no one knows about Geno Auriemma.”
“That he’s a nice loving guy, and he’s not hardcore as it seems which he is, don’t get me wrong,” Arnold said. “But he’s a very tough loving coach. I don’t think too many people see that. They see his bad side often so.”
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emma has been coaching at UConn since 1985, compiling a 1,250-165 record, while boasting 12 NCAA Championships, eight times Naismith Coach of the Year and several other accolades. Anyone on the outside may not have nice things to say about Auriemma’s coaching style, but those who have spent enough time to learn why Auriemma is the way he is, like Arnold, find him soft at heart.
Geno Auriemma Reveals Why He Has Coached This Long
At 71, Geno Auriemma became the oldest coach — men’s or women’s — to win an NCAA national championship in April 2025. The reason he has been able to do coaching for this long is because of the players around him.
“I know a lot of my friends that are my age that haven’t done what I’ve done with who I’ve done it with, and they look way older, act way older because they’ve lost the ability to be a kid because they’re not around kids,” Auriemma said after winning the program’s 12th national championship.
“So, yeah, I may be 71 number-wise, but I think otherwise I’m more able to do stuff with those young people, because I’m around them every day and they rub off on me.”
Before Auriemma won it all at the age of 71, the previous record for winning the national championship at an old age belonged to former UConn men’s basketball coach Jim Calhoun, who won the 2011 national championship when he was 68.
After winning the national championship this year, Coach Geno was so motivated that he said that he would coach for the next six, seven, or eight years easily. Auriemma remains under contract through 2028–29. But right now, he’s far from retiring and is currently preparing to defend the national title next season.
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