How did you become a UConn fan? | Page 2 | The Boneyard

How did you become a UConn fan?

I grew up in PA a die hard Penn State football fan. I wanted to go to a college that had good sports, so I applied to PSU, Pitt, and UConn. I knew I'd get into Pitt as a back up, but really didn't want to be in a city. I didn't know anything about UConn academics, just the bball team. I had no idea if I'd get in or not.

I got accepted to UConn and Pitt and didn't get into Penn State main campus, so I went on a tour of UConn and absolutely loved it there. I went '08 - '12 (and remembered making good money picking UConn in 8th grade in my '04 bracket with a group of friends at school).
 
I was born in Eastern CT in 1978 and attended my first game at the Field House in the mid-80s when the goal was to avoid the Big East Tournament play-in game. I do know that at one of my first games, the person sitting behind me got annoyed with my incessant pom-pom waving and took it out of my hands and broke it in half. But the lesson I learned was to be tough and never back down when my father bought me a new pom-pom and told me to wave it as much as I wanted too. I can't believe that this 35+ year love affair began with something in that way...but I hope it never changes!

But I would say the Dream Season was the beginning of my obsession and remember a bunch of us quickly going down to the local playground and shooting hoops after the Huskies won the BET that season. I of course recall crying after Laettner hit a game winner...though not as bad as when the Red Sox lost game 6 in 1986.

Go Huskies!!!
 
Grew up in CT in the 60's. Bob Staak was my first favorite player. Bobby Dulin, L.E.O Wilson (he would shoot once he crossed half court). I remember them all. Back when we kinda ruled the old Yankee Conference and UMASS-holes were our biggest rivalry. Went to tons of games in the old field house as a kid. When I got my first job out of college I became a season ticket holder and kept them even after moving to Florida 23 years ago. Finally gave them up about 6 years ago. Attended the first three Final Fours. Attended the players after party in San Antonio in 2004.
 
Grew up in Manchester from 1970. My dad worked at the Hartford. He regularly had unused suite tickets at the Civic Center for weeknight games. So starting sometime in the late 70's he started taking me. Norm Bailey, Vern Giscombe, Corny, Mike McKay, those teams under Perno. They were better than we often remember. It was the 32 team era. Then I went to UConn starting in 1984, was on campus for the NIT championship and the arrival of JC. We went to pretty much every game. I was lucky to have "golden ticket", student seats behind the basket for the opening season of Gampel.
 
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GampelGladiator said:
I do know that at one of my first games, the person sitting behind me got annoyed with my incessant pom-pom waving and took it out of my hands and broke it in half. But the lesson I learned was to be tough and never back down when my father bought me a new pom-pom and told me to wave it as much as I wanted too.
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Not to be all Internet tough guy or anything, but ...if someone took a pom-pom, or whatever, from my kid and broke it in half, he'd be spitting out Chiclets. What an asshat that guy was!

(Just a guess, but it was probably Deepster.)
 
Accidental encounter with a WTIC broadcast in 1962. Became a Toby Kimball fan. Been a UConn mens bb fan ever since.

Started paying attention to the women's program 1990. Little did I know what was to follow.

Football fan on and off since the 80's. Well two out of three ain't bad.
 
CL82 said:
Not to be all Internet tough guy or anything, but ...if someone took a pom-pom, or whatever, from my kid and broke it in half, he'd be spitting out Chiclets. What an asshat that guy was!

(Just a guess, but it was probably Deepster.)
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My memory of it is really knowing the story...but I am sure that the guy was very lucky that my father is incredibly patient and calm.
 
I became a UConn Huskie fan when I started hearing UConn games on WTIC radio in the mid 50's .... Yankee Conference with the Rhody Rams, the Maine Black Bears and the Catamounts among others ... Wes Bialasuknia and Toby Kimball and Perno and others .... listened frequently and rooted for the Huskies for a long time ... then the big step ;up with Calhoun and their first major championship, the NIT .... then Chris Smith and Nadev which really changed everything
 
GampelGladiator said:
My memory of it is really knowing the story...but I am sure that the guy was very lucky that my father is incredibly patient and calm.
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No doubt! I'm sure he thought it out, bit his tongue, took a deep breath and decided to role model behavior for you but I guarantee you he was boiling inside. I also feel pretty confident if the guy repeated that stunt, his patience probably would've been exhausted.
 
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When I was 6, I got a clock/radio for Christmas. First present I ever got that had a plug. When I got home from Grandma's and plugged it in before I went to bed, UConn was on and I've been a fan ever since.
 
Born in 1982, lived in North Haven, my parents weren’t big basketball heads but somewhere around 89-90 they started noticing that UConn was giving these big east beasts a tough time. My mom had gone to UConn so they had an easy time picking it up.
We became die hard fans, I’d make a poster to watch a game in my living room. As a teen I wanted to go to UConn because of basketball, got a better scholarship to BU but it didn’t matter. I saw the ‘04 title as a student, now I live in Boston and got to see them at the regional this year.

6 year old daughter, 3 year old son who are both the best at dribbling a basketball in their classes, the next generation is coming along nicely so far
 
Born in ‘93. Parents who really weren’t big into sports for some reason loved UConn basketball. Printed out schedules for Men’s and Women’s every year and would rarely miss a game. Remember they had a party to watch ‘99 championship game and my love for UConn/basketball was officially born. Played basketball from that point on through high school. UConn basketball pretty much decided where I was going to school (duh… UConn). 2014 is a year I will never, ever forget.

CONGRATS ON #6! BLEED BLUE!
 
Grew up in eastern CT, close by to Storrs. As a kid, I'd go on field trips to the various livestock barns with my school. I had two older cousins who both went to UConn, and as a teenager I'd go there and visit them. Then it was my turn to go to college, and I chose UConn. I loved my time there (the "Animal House" years -- absolutely crazy). But I didn't become a fan until after I moved to Florida. My dad, a huge sports fan, told me that I should start watching UConn games on TV because "they were pretty good, you'd be surprised." So I did. That was the NIT season. Been a fan ever since.
 
TrueBlue22 said:
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.
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I was from Rockville and in the army from 70 to 73. A local newspaper possibly JI sent me their paper and I started following Uconn. Jimmy Foster, Al Weston and I can't remember the rest
 
TrueBlue22 said:
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.
Expand ...
The Dream Season. Learned it was the best way to beat the winter blues;)
 
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My intro was in 1988. I was 13 and the first year i followed the ncaa tornament closely. I would read the stories in the New Haven Register every day and i kept seeing these stories about UConn in another tournament. I became enthralled for some reason. By that Fall, i was hooked watching games on channel 8. By the Fall of 89 my brother was a student there and i joined him in the fall of 92.

One of the most gut wrenching days of my life was that horrible day day in March 1990 when Duke beat us and i thought that was our one chance at a Final Four. To this day, i hate Duke for that reason. And no matter how many more titles we win, I will never stop hating Duke.
 
I came to UConn the season after the Dream Season as a transfer, and every time I went to Homer Babbage library I'd watch the video replay of "The Shot" at a kiosk. I would get chills each and every time. I must've watched that video hundreds of times over the years, but it was always electric to watch. That's what did it for me. I entered UConn not really interested in basketball, and I'm now headed back home from the Final Four. What a gift!
 
I went to Storrs in the mid-70s when soccer outdrew football, Hartwick was probably our biggest rival in any sport, and the big football game was vs Yale. It was the Hanson/Phelan era at the Fieldhouse. I went to a lot of hoops games vs ECAC fodder, but let's face it, soccer was much more fun as you could have kegs delivered to the pitch.
 
Born and raised in Poughkeepsie NY. We had a player who went FDR high school in Hyde Park, NY. He played four years for UConn. He was my introduction to UConn basketball.

Wes Bialosounknia - The Poughkeepsie Popper. Since I played ball, a lot of us in the area followed his career. Papers were always keeping us informed. Followed him during his yearsd with Oakland in the ABA.

Jump ahead to the early 90's with the teams of Corney Thompson. Then the move to the Big East. Been a fan since those early years. The wife and I are also avid fans of the UConn women.

Our three sons are avid UConn fans. #2 son went to UCOnn as did his wife. And the 4 grandsons are definitely UConn fans. Got to raise them right!!
 
Listening to UConn games in the early-mid 80's on a transistor radio with earplugs headphones in my bed when I was supposed to be sleeping. Earl Kelley and Gerry Besselink were my guys. If you don't know what a great Husky Gerry Besselink was, read this. He made me a fan. A Canadian Husky long before Denham Brown. I'd love to see him around the school sometime. UCONN Hoop Legends: GERRY BESSELINK
 
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Born and raised in CT, fan of whalers and huskies since being young.. My older sister was a uconn student remember being on campus the 99 title game. Then myself being a student from 01 to 04 went to every game as a student. Though I'm on the west coast, follow the team religiously. Been to a dozen big east tourney games, sweet 16 and final four games. Bleed blue!
 
As a 10 year old in '78 I was listening to a transistor radio under my pillow while a raspy voiced announcer was hissing things like "Corny lays it in" and "here we are at Curry Hicks Cage" and "Holy Cross is really buzzing now" over this constant static and hiss (which I supposed was fan noise). Anyway, that's when I first started following them, then my Dad drove us up for a few games a year.
 
College choice came down to Purdue and UConn. Chose UConn because I wanted to live in the northeast after college and I figured I would be able to stay in touch with friends from UConn a lot easier than friends from Purdue.
 
Born and raised in The Hollow in Bridgeport in the 60s and 70s. I grew tired of the home grown talent leaving and I started rooting for the Huskies. I was pumped when Corny, McKay, committed.
 
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