From John Altavilla's blog - geno and team about why they play at UConn

[RadyLady]

and it has nothing to do with conference. Read this

Bria says it about the best: “If you think about playing basketball in college and winning a national championship, you think about UConn. It doesn’t matter what conference you are in because UConn is always going to play the top teams.”

To this I would say that we UConn fans should thank our lucky stars: What the players are more concerned about is playing for a coach that will make them better. And the truth is, had Auriemma left Virginia three decades ago for UMass or Rhode Island, and had the same success, that’s where the All-Americans and Olympians would flock.


And Geno: “Since it [realignment] all started to happen, I began to think of us [UConn] like we were an independent contractor,” Auriemma said. “We go out and play, we get [players] we are going to get. We play who is on the schedule and we’re in the Big East to win the Big East. We’ve been good as a basketball program in terms of just not worrying about things that you have no control over it.”

 

[EricLA]

Wow great stuff. Thanks for the quotes Rady!

 

[RadyLady]

thanks.

 

[tomcat]

Thanks for the quotes. I don't doubt that everyone believes what they've said. But I look at Geno's quotes as something he has to say, under the circumstances. Everyone knows UConn wants to be in the ACC, and if they don't get there, he has to have a story to use with recruits in the future. So it will be like this: Think of us as independent contractors. I've spun more that a couple of situations in my time, and this looks like spinning to me, and honestly, I think it sounds weak.

Maybe UConn would get Breanna no matter what, but at the time she was recruited, UConn was playing in a major basketball conference with Notre Dame, Syracuse and Louisville. When Geno goes to get the next Breanna, they will be in a conference with Villanova, Georgetown, USF and Temple. That has to have an effect, no matter what the coach or the students claim.

 

[RadyLady]

Seriously....Geno says something because he HAS to say it?



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[ndmb]

My desire for UConn to get the hell out of the Big East doesn't have anything to do with short-term success. Even if it doesn't happen for 20 years, eventually, Geno's going to leave. When he does, if we want to continue to be a national power, we have to be in a competitive conference.

 

[alexrgct]

I would agree that as long as Geno is at Uconn, the conference doesn't matter that much, but it is important for sustaining success post-Geno (though it's going to be a challenge no matter what once he's gone).

It's more important in the immediate term for football and men's basketball, however.

 

[arty155]

-Thank you for highlighting this article. I would not have seen it otherwise. Thanks particularly for providing that link - I don’t know how the ‘blog-business’ works, but I imagine the number of visits a site gets may support the blog’s ability to attract advertising, and the editorial staff's understanding of reader interest... and thereby ultimately support continued excellent reporting like this. Your quotes here from Mr. A’s writing certainly highlighted the whole article was a ‘must read” for me. Thanks.
- As for the article itself… what strikes me is this writer’s innovation. His idea - gathering insight and quotes directly from our current players on the impact conference memebership had on THEIR recruitment - seems an original, interesting, and (as usual with Mr. Altavilla) entertaining approach, that I have not seen elsewhere. Seeing Coach Auriemma’s own words also gives me a idea how SNY coverage may indeed be explained to potential recruits. Fresh angle - prolific writer.