How did you become a UConn fan?

[TrueBlue22]

I’m sure this has been done before, but what better time to reminisce than now.

For me it was after the ‘99 title. We had a student teacher who was a manager for the team, seeing the pictures and hearing his stories were mesmerizing. It felt like I could touch it, like I was a part of it too.

Caron Butler lured me further, only for the ‘03 and ‘04 squads to lock me in for life. I was hooked. I would sneak college basketball magazines, and newspapers into class and read them religiously. I started writing my own college basketball previews, and spending free time drawing terrible tracings of said magazine covers.

After the latter Ollie years, I remember wondering if we had already been blessed with the best years of UConn basketball many of us would see in our lifetimes.

I never imagined that the best was yet to come

Cheers.

 

[CardiacAndre7]

It’s funny, I think I have a pretty unique introduction to becoming a UConn fan.

Born in ‘96, so was too young to really know much about the ‘99 team.

I had 2 Huskies growing up (my favorite dogs) and both sides of my parents family are from/lived in Connecticut (We lived on Long Island).

I remember being a die hard fan from about 6 years old on. I loved the jerseys, the undershirts Ben Gordon wore, always played with them in NCAA Basketball on my playstation. Just like the rest of you goons, i’ve become an insane fan. Not a bad team I got hooked on though…

 

[BlueHen]

My father used to take me to games. Some of my earliest childhood memories are eating cracker jacks at the field house even though I had no idea about the game.

Been a fan ever since. Haven't seen a game in Storrs since the 70's, but have met up with my father to see them play in MSG, the Palestra in Philly and the Wells Fargo Center in Philly. Always good to see them beat Villanova.

 

[Inyatkin]

The Dream Season was my introduction. Followed all through the 90s culminating with experiencing '99 on campus as a senior. Not a bad decade.

 

[NCHuskie919]

Moved from CT to NC in 89 when I was 3. Hated all things Carolina schools for the most part. 1995 Ray Allen vs Allen Iverson. It helped me go against the grain.

 

[MexicoHusky]

Dream season for me. I was 13. Before that i was more into kid things... 1990 i started watching sports in general.

 

[Palatine]

In 1960 my cousin Vic went to UConn, his brother Joe went the next year, my older brother went soon after. My brother took me to a game in the old field house in 62, I was ten. I eventually went, my younger sister went. My wife's parents also went to UConn. You get the idea.

 

[B1GEast]

The NIT champion. That was a big deal

 

[NC_Uconn_Fan]

Dream season, I was 12. Hooked ever since.

 

[StllH8L8ner]

Older siblings who went there and attending games in the Fieldhouse when I was a middle schooler. Huskymania followed shortly after.

 

[Jaydumo20]

From Greenwich, CT. Huge sports family. Mom and Dad met at UConn. Older brother went to UConn. I went to Uconn 97-01. Sister went to UConn 99-03. I'm a huge Tampa Bay Rays and Denver Broncos fan but nobody comes to close to my Huskies bball. Men and Women.

 

[navery12]

The UConn admissions department offered me more money than the Syracuse admissions department. The rest is history

 

[greenday61892]

My mom was a professor there for the longest time, born and raised into it

 

[nomar]

The NIT champion. That was a big deal

Yeah, I was 11 when they won it. I was a full-on fan by the time the Dream Season came around.

 

[LBird33]

When Calhoun became coach. I remember his runs with Northeastern. So became intrigued with him at UCONN. Had no idea it would become so great. Has been fun to watch all these years

 

[Horatio]

Since the NIT Championship. Since the days of Cyrulik. You youngsters have no idea of the struggle and pain we went through to get to 1999. “The Peoples Elbow” was the crucial spark. We almost formed militias and marched down to North Carolina Lol. #6

 

[BleedHuskyBlu]

Grew up in Connecticut all my life, got accepted to the University of Connecticut in 2013. Made a boneyard account my senior year of highschool 2013. Won the championship my freshman year (which is why no player can ever touch Shabazz for me,) the rest is history!

 

[stickybuddy]

Born and raised in CT into a family of fans. Grew up watching the great teams of the 90s. Started being obsessive with probably the 96-97 team. Was a student on campus in 2004. Huskies forever.

 

[John]

was taken to games at the field house as a young kid by a family member who is a Husky fanatic.

 

[CTtoSanDiego]

graduated UConn in 1975.... attended every game in the old Field House... been a fan ever since, of course.... It was a long wait until 1999!

 

[CTBasketball]

My dad was a avid fan dating back to the Fieldhouse days. I was born in 1992, so I grew up watching Ray, Kirk, Rip, and Selvie.

He also made me rewatch every game from 1986 onwards so that I didn’t miss anything. Him and my mom’s favorite beer is Rolling Rock, it’s always in the fridge.

So you can see how this developed into a massive addiction.

 

[rbny1]

I listened to UConn games on the radio when I was a teenager growing up in West Hartford in the 1950s. I went to college in Vermont and moved to New York after college, but I bonded with the team as a teenager and have been a fan ever since.

 

[jleves]

Born lucky

 

[elmcityboy]

my dad went there. i was born in 1991 so have some memories of dad going crazy during the 1999 championship run.

i followed along when i was younger, but to be honest, i fell out of love with sports for a long time when i got into skateboarding and playing music in middle school and high school.

my twin brother and i graduated in 2014, so we were there for two titles. i started following the '14 team pretty closely and got completely hooked during the '14 - '15 season, living in new haven. it's been a crazy ride through the dark ages of the late ollie years, although, as a young twentysomething at the time, i certainly appreciated how cheap the tickets were back then.

 

[Irvine]

Grew up in CT and followed them probably since the early 90s. No connection to the university other than tax dollars. All the pro teams I root for stink, so thank god for UConn.

 

[Tenspro2002]

Grew up in Connecticut in the 90s. I was a toddler during the Dream Season, but followed the team beginning around 1993-1994. It's been a hell of a 30-year run.

 

[husky8273]

never followed UConn before attending; couldn't afford other schools, enrolled in my safety school in '76 - Husky Forever

 

[CL82]

I grew up in Connecticut and always wanted to attend UConn especially after older siblings and friends went there. I turned down other lesser schools, like Brown, to attend.

Like many above have mentioned, I used to go to all the games at the old Fieldhouse, which was an amazing place to see a game. it was absolutely packed to the point that you literally could not get another person in the building and many people would be watching from the doors. It's been a passion ever since.

 

[HailUConn]

I came to Uconn as a grad student in the Fall of 1998. I became a Huskies Fan in the tiny living room of my rented apt watching 1999 team beat Duke. That was a good time and I vividly remember the gas money is 75c/gallon.

 

[Hey Adrien!]

I don't have sporty parents, so I guess I officially became a UConn in 3rd grade which was the 1993-94 season.

That same year, my oldest sister applied to (and ultimately went to UConn), so I visited campus one day and I remember another day attending a game at HCC at some point that season, which I'm pretty sure was the 2/26/94 win against Pitt. I had to pay my way through college, so UConn was the only American school I applied to (didn't get into McGill), so my fandom + financial sense made going to UConn the easy and obvious choice (Great Pick!)

I can't recall following UConn or even watching any games prior to that year, so that'll be my official start date of fandom. Overall, it was a really good sports year for me: Rangers win the cup, Yankees were in the nascent stages of their dynasty and the Knicks had their NBA Finals run.