Geno fires shot at Calhoun in Seth Davis interview

[CL82]

Link to video

C'mon Geno you ought to have know better thann to be suckered in by Davis

 

[8893]

Thanks for posting. Interesting. I didn't see it as a shot at Calhoun. Sounded like a pretty fair assessment from his point of view. Calhoun probably wouldn't like, or cop to, the notion that he looked down on the women's program or that he was annoyed but how much they won and the enthusiasm for the team, but I'm sure that's how his annoyance at the comparison of the two programs--as is done often here--is perceived by many fans of the women's program. Just like the dynamic that gets replayed time and again here whenever the two programs are compared. And I am sure it really annoyed him when the conversation veered towards comparing the records, etc.

 

[nomar]

Thanks for posting. Interesting. I didn't see it as a shot at Calhoun. Sounded like a pretty fair assessment from his point of view. Calhoun probably wouldn't like, or cop to, the notion that he looked down on the women's program or that he was annoyed but how much they won and the enthusiasm for the team, but I'm sure that's how his annoyance at the comparison of the two programs--as is done often here--is perceived by many fans of the women's program. Just like the dynamic that gets replayed time and again here whenever the two programs are compared. And I am sure it really annoyed him when the conversation veered towards comparing the records, etc.

It's still a shot at Calhoun, even if it's partially or mostly true. He's putting the blame for the poor relationship squarely on Calhoun, implying that JC resented Auriemma's success.

I like both guys, but both guys can be jerks. And Auriemma has rubbed way too many people the wrong way for me to think this was a one-way street. Auriemma did acknowledge that "it takes two to tango" before pointing the finger at Calhoun.

As more of a men's basketball guy, I tip my cap to what Geno has accomplished. Calhoun may have done the unthinkable at UConn, but Geno is arguably the most successful college basketball coach of all time. My annoyance has nothing to do with comparing their relative successes; I'll give that to Geno (although I could see how such comparisons would bother JC). My annoyance has to do with (a) posters who say stuff like "[JC; KO] should watch Geno coach" and (b) people who suggest that they enjoy watching the UConn women more than the UConn men without realizing that most of their stated reasons are subconsciously pretext and that they actually enjoy watching the UConn women because they get the best recruits year after year and steamroll their opponents 95% of the time.

 

[TRest]

I'm a fan of both, but have been living and dying with the men's team since the mid-70's. My wife is also a UConn alum, but really only cares for the women's program and always wonders why the men can't match that success. I think it's that viewpoint that separates the fan bases and lead to some frustration for JC. It took him about a decade of knocking on the door to get to the Final 4 and win a NC. Once Geno started rolling, it almost became too easy.

And I always thought Geno pulled a bit of a move by cozying up with Calipari when he was at UMass.

 

[jibsey]

How many women's programs get great players vs number of men's? Not trying to diminish Geno but you're talking apples and oranges here. The best women's players in the country concentrate in a few schools one of them UCONN who gets the best of the best. Calhoun didn't have that even though he recruited some studs. He did it against the teams that were stockpiling. If the men were like that we would have Diamond Stone and 3 other top ten players coming in.

 

[Chief00]

Agree that last line says it all - coach Cal and Geno got too close. Good for Jim to call him out on it.

 

[mauconnfan]

Crap move by Geno. He's ZERO without JC, period!

Fung Wah from a guy who can't hold his jock strap.

 

[mauconnfan]

All the dopes have no clue, I mean the "other fans" idiots. Seriously lost respect for Geno - Seth game him an out with the "kids, ages, family etc etc" which is real, yet he said NO. Bad move, too arrogant for his own good!

 

[dtrumpet]

Geno acknowledges that men's hoop is king in terms of numbers of fans and $$$, but when you hear him talk about successes and being denigrated, you would think he and JC were coaching the same game.
Geno and JC are more alike than different, obviously to a fault, and he feels like JC demeaned his program. I don't remember that happening in the public eye (but have a bad memory), but for him to say that after the 3rd or 4th year, "I didn't want anything to do with that" is showing less respect to a legend than is appropriate. They are both legends, Geno should have more obviously shown his awareness of that, whether they ever got along or not.
Geno had a chance to take the high road, and chose not to.

 

[Hoophound]

Look at this piece of comedy from the comments section:


"Chester
3 hours ago 1 2
There is no comparison between the two. Calhoun was a terrible coach who got lucky a couple of times. Geno on the other hand can flat out coach, which is why his teams are so great. Geno not only wins on the court, his players graduate which helps to prove what a great person and coach he is!!"

 

[UConn990411]

This is sure to be a pleasant thread to read.

Can we get back to making fun of Cuse please?

 

[BLUEDOGHOUSE]

All the dopes have no clue, I mean the "other fans" idiots. Seriously lost respect for Geno - Seth game him an out with the "kids, ages, family etc etc" which is real, yet he said NO. Bad move, too arrogant for his own good!

Seth was right they are alike. In my opinion that is the hypocrisy of it all as it relates to Geno. IF Geno were in the same position as JC and the roles were reversed....Geno would have treated Calhoun the same way.

 

[Huskyforlife]

I wish we could have kept Caron butler for 2 more years, or Kemba for his senior year, etc. The games are different, but Geno doesn't touch Calhoun in coaching or success.

 

[MattMang23]

To take nothing from Geno; his teams are tremendous, both on the court and as ambassadors for our university, but he can't hold a candle to Jim Calhoun in terms of what they did to elevate the university.

Jim put us on the map first, Geno took it to new heights, but, in the end, Geno coaches a women's basketball team. The money is in men's hoops, and although Geno has more wins than Jim, more national titles than Jim, and has a better program in his game than Jim ever did, Jim Calhoun did more for this school than Geno has.

And I mean that with no disrespect toward Geno. Really, I don't. But when you talk about exposure, and making money, men's basketball to women's basketball is like comparing a company winning an award in the Wall Street Journal versus winning an award in the Hartford Courant.

Geno should be proud of his and his team's accomplishments, but should respect that Jim Calhoun means more to UConn. And I'm glad he does.

 

[Stainmaster]

What differentiates them for me is that Geno worked his magic while women's college basketball was in its (relative) infancy. Old Dominion, Louisiana Tech, and Tennessee were powers during the 80s, and then everyone else was still crawling through the primordial ooze. Calhoun had a myriad of established powers he had to overcome in order to bring our program to where it is. Men's basketball will always have more competition, both on the court and on the recruiting trail.

 

[nycscooby]

Matt, that's exactly what Geno said that women's hoops can't compare with men's hoops. I don't condone Geno for taking the bait, he shouldn't have but he doesn't like the Calhoun and feels like Calhoun denigrated him and his program. No big deal. Offhand, I can't recall Calhoun saying anything publicly, does anyone else?

 

[MattMang23]

Matt, that's exactly what Geno said that women's hoops can't compare with men's hoops. I don't condone Geno for taking the bait, he shouldn't have but he doesn't like the Calhoun and feels like Calhoun denigrated him and his program. No big deal. Offhand, I can't recall Calhoun saying anything publicly, does anyone else?

Sorry, admittedly I didn't watch the video first. Went off of others' comments. So I edited my post to add the last sentence.

 

[UConnDan97]

Both men created UConn greatness from almost nothing.
Both men have my respect and my "Bleed Blue" love.
But there's no doubt in my mind that what Geno said was true. And there's no reason that it should have become true. All one has to do is look at the relationship that Ollie and Auriemma currently have. And quite frankly, that's how it should be...

 

[TheChamps990411]

I wish we could have kept Caron butler for 2 more years, or Kemba for his senior year, etc. The games are different, but Geno doesn't touch Calhoun in coaching or success.

Comparing the womens game to the mens game is absolutely laughable! For any womens coach to compare their success with a mens coach is a joke. Im not going to go into a long sermon about players declaring early, larger talent pool etc. but i will say this. Geno go coach the mens game for the next decade at a school that has no history of success and build a national power. Then talk. In the mean while stfu!

 

[Rocktheworld]

It's still a shot at Calhoun, even if it's partially or mostly true. He's putting the blame for the poor relationship squarely on Calhoun, implying that JC resented Auriemma's success.

I like both guys, but both guys can be jerks. And Auriemma has rubbed way too many people the wrong way for me to think this was a one-way street. Auriemma did acknowledge that "it takes two to tango" before pointing the finger at Calhoun.

You might have noticed he said barely anything before saying "I guess it takes two to tango."

He was just explaining his perspective on why he didn't really like JC. I'm sure JC has his own side as to why he didn't really like Geno, and it's not Geno's place to speculate as to why JC didn't like him.

 

[TheChamps990411]

Look at this piece of comedy from the comments section:


"Chester
3 hours ago 1 2
There is no comparison between the two. Calhoun was a terrible coach who got lucky a couple of times. Geno on the other hand can flat out coach, which is why his teams are so great. Geno not only wins on the court, his players graduate which helps to prove what a great person and coach he is!!"

Perhaps the absolute stupidest thing ive ever read and thats saying a lot. I seriously would love to meet this person because i guarantee they have an iq under 60 or know nothing about Uconn basketball.

 

[Hoophound]

You might have noticed he said barely anything before saying "I guess it takes two to tango." He was just explaining his perspective on why he didn't really like JC. I'm sure JC has his own side as to why he didn't really like Geno, and it's not Geno's place to speculate as to why JC didn't like him.

Well, JC can certainly let him have it now if he wants to. I suspect he'll just ignore it though. It is small of Geno to do this to a retired Hall of Famer, especially now that JC is out of the spotlight.

I'd guess that Geno needled JC a little and made matters worse over the years. Geno is that type of person, always teasing people he doesn't get along with. Some people would laugh and ultimately reach an understanding. These two are stubborn and I think after a while it just became total dislike.

 

[DarthGrumpy]

This is news? In '95/'96 after the women won their first title in '95, which also happened to be the year that a very good UConn team tried to out-run the one team in the Dance who could out-score them, UCLA, and lost the entire campus knew that the two coaches were not on speaking terms. What's the big deal? Both men are great, winning coaches driven by the need to win. Both have egos the size of Gampel Pavilion. What is surprising to me is that the two managed to co-exist on the same campus without killing each other for so many years.

 

[gtcam]

Geno is Geno and JC is JC.
Both are great at what they do but with that success comes some clash of egos. If they coached at different schools they would probably be best friends.
I know one of them very well and the other in a passing way - not saying which.
I sincerely feel that Geno may have a bit of insecurity in the whole situation - he has won more titles than JC but in the overall picture, sees himself as playing 2nd fiddle.
The two separate "sports" can only be compared in that there are 10 players on the court, two hoops and a round ball.
The men's side is so much more competitive and have more variables (low number of 4 yr players and a total recruitment jungle) vs the stability and flood of top stars coming with little recruitment competition.
It would be nice if they got along but we should just be thankful; that UConn has/had both as coaches.

 

[Excalibur]

It's pretty clear that Geno still resents comments made by Calhoun 20 years ago . . .