Jim Calhoun explains why basketball is 'More Than a Game' in upcoming book | The Boneyard

Jim Calhoun explains why basketball is 'More Than a Game' in upcoming book

HooperScooper

HooperScooper

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Mike Anthony interviewed Calhoun to discuss his upcoming book.

“I am what I am and maybe someday you'll see that I'm trying to do the best for you and it's not always perfect and I make mistakes and I [screw] up and I'm like every other human being,”” Calhoun said of his approach to coaching. “But what I started, and what I tried to do, was what I thought was best for you at the time.”

Later, in the most Calhoun way possible, Calhoun added, “The biggest thing is, when I say, ‘Get your [bleepin’] ass up and start playing some [bleepin’] defense, that doesn't mean I don't like ya. Know what I'm saying?”


The RuffRuff Alternate Access:

Jim Calhoun explains why basketball is 'More Than a Game' in upcoming book​

 
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cwh20 said:
I hadn’t heard of Calhoun before the hire. Bless him for coming to UConn!
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You don't remember Northeastern kicking UConn's butt in Hartford in the 1985-1986 season? Or taking Northeastern to 5 of 6 NCAA Tournaments between 1981 and 1986? I'm actually surprised nobody hired him before UConn did. In today's world there is no way he would have stayed at Northeastern as long as he did. A big school would have hired him much sooner.
 
HooperScooper said:
You don't remember Northeastern kicking UConn's butt in Hartford in the 1985-1986 season? Or taking Northeastern to 5 of 6 NCAA Tournaments between 1981 and 1986? I'm actually surprised nobody hired him before UConn did. In today's world there is no way he would have stayed at Northeastern as long as he did. A big school would have hired him much sooner.
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No. I thought I was very clear on that point.
 
HooperScooper said:
My point wasn't really to single you out. It was to point out that most people weren't paying attention. Media wasn't as widespread as it is today.
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Internet wasn’t even a thing.

How does someone even research this kind of stuff in those days if it’s not on national media?
 
HooperScooper said:
My point wasn't really to single you out. It was to point out that most people weren't paying attention. Media wasn't as widespread as it is today.
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I know you weren’t. And to add to your reply Calhoun was offered by schools but on the advice of (can’t remember) was told to wait it out. His advice was to go to a public school with the state name that is going to provide everything you need to be successful. I think Northwestern was the biggest name school that Calhoun didn’t accept a position at.
 
cwh20 said:
I know you weren’t. And to add to your reply Calhoun was offered by schools but on the advice of (can’t remember) was told to wait it out. His advice was to go to a public school with the state name that is going to provide everything you need to be successful. I think Northwestern was the biggest name school that Calhoun didn’t accept a position at.
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Bobby Knight told Calhoun UConn is a sleeping giant and he needs to take that job.
 
RuffRuff said:
The Godfather of Uconn Hoops - place was an apocalyptic parking lot of hoops nothingness before him.
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Everyone is entitled to their opinion and I appreciate yours RR
There was no OBE - just the Yankee Conference and UConn had some notable players and success before the OBE started
Obviously, things blossomed under JC and Lew Perkins ("Think, Act, Be Big Time") but a parking lot of nothingness is a bit of an exaggeration.
 
gtcam said:
Everyone is entitled to their opinion and I appreciate yours RR
There was no OBE - just the Yankee Conference and UConn had some notable players and success before the OBE started
Obviously, things blossomed under JC and Lew Perkins ("Think, Act, Be Big Time") but a parking lot of nothingness is a bit of an exaggeration.
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For a program that today prides itself on NCs, it's hard to call it anything more than a regional school before JC's arrival. It had one NCAA tournament win in 50 years. Sure if you're a historian, you can single out a player or two who stood out, maybe a nice regional run, but there is literally nothing on the national stage to observe. I appreciate the sentimentalism, but let's be realistic. It was pretty much nothing before he got here, and a reason a lot of the blue bloods refrain from calling us one.
 
RuffRuff said:
For a program that today prides itself on NCs, it's hard to call it anything more than a regional school before JC's arrival. It had one NCAA tournament win in 50 years. Sure if you're a historian, you can single out a player or two who stood out, maybe a nice regional run, but there is literally nothing on the national stage to observe. I appreciate the sentimentalism, but let's be realistic. It was pretty much nothing before he got here, and a reason a lot of the blue bloods refrain from calling us one.
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One tournament win in 50 years? Whether you realize it or not UConn played a pretty good brand of basketball before JC. Were they a national championship contender? No.
 
LIUCHusky said:
One tournament win in 50 years? Whether you realize it or not UConn played a pretty good brand of basketball before JC. Were they a national championship contender? No.
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They made it to 6 tournaments in 50 years, one win against Princeton. They had a 60% winning percentage against New England state schools. Most of those schools today are low mid major. The Yankee conference was very much a mid major.

They weren't even a blip on the national radar, nevermind NC contender. No non-local historian recognizes a nice brand of basketball against New Hampshire.
 
RuffRuff said:
They made it to 6 tournaments in 50 years, one win against Princeton. They had a 60% winning percentage against New England state schools. Most of those schools today are low mid major. The Yankee conference was very much a mid major.

They weren't even a blip on the national radar, nevermind NC contender. No non-local historian recognizes a nice brand of basketball against New Hampshire.
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You're incorrect. They beat Temple, Princeton, Hofstra, and Manhattan in the NCAA tournament in the 30 years before Calhoun.
 
superjohn said:
You're incorrect. They beat Temple, Princeton, Hofstra, and Manhattan in the NCAA tournament in the 30 years before Calhoun.
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Pre-Calhoun NCAA Tournament Results (men’s team)​

  • 1951: Beat Princeton 53–52 (first round). Lost to Kentucky in the regional semifinal.
  • 1954, 1956, 1960, 1961, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1985: All appearances ended with first-round losses.
That means:
  • The only NCAA tournament victory prior to Calhoun was indeed the 1951 win over Princeton.
  • They did not notch wins over Temple, Hofstra, or Manhattan in the NCAA tournament. (They did play and beat those schools in other postseason events — notably the NIT, which UConn appeared in several times in the 1950s and 1960s. For example, UConn beat Hofstra in the 1956 NIT, Temple in the 1960 NIT, and Manhattan in a later NIT — but those were not NCAA tournament games.)
Answer:
In the NCAA tournament, UConn had 1 win pre-Calhoun (vs. Princeton, 1951).
  • Additional wins you’re recalling (Temple, Hofstra, Manhattan) came in the NIT, not the NCAA
 
RuffRuff said:

Pre-Calhoun NCAA Tournament Results (men’s team)​

  • 1951: Beat Princeton 53–52 (first round). Lost to Kentucky in the regional semifinal.
  • 1954, 1956, 1960, 1961, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1985: All appearances ended with first-round losses.
That means:
  • The only NCAA tournament victory prior to Calhoun was indeed the 1951 win over Princeton.
  • They did not notch wins over Temple, Hofstra, or Manhattan in the NCAA tournament. (They did play and beat those schools in other postseason events — notably the NIT, which UConn appeared in several times in the 1950s and 1960s. For example, UConn beat Hofstra in the 1956 NIT, Temple in the 1960 NIT, and Manhattan in a later NIT — but those were not NCAA tournament games.)
Answer:
In the NCAA tournament, UConn had 1 win pre-Calhoun (vs. Princeton, 1951).
  • Additional wins you’re recalling (Temple, Hofstra, Manhattan) came in the NIT, not the NCAA
Expand ...
Screenshot_20250923_172151_Chrome.jpg
 
chatgpt for the win lol
RuffRuff said:

Pre-Calhoun NCAA Tournament Results (men’s team)​

  • 1951: Beat Princeton 53–52 (first round). Lost to Kentucky in the regional semifinal.
  • 1954, 1956, 1960, 1961, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1983, 1985: All appearances ended with first-round losses.
That means:
  • The only NCAA tournament victory prior to Calhoun was indeed the 1951 win over Princeton.
  • They did not notch wins over Temple, Hofstra, or Manhattan in the NCAA tournament. (They did play and beat those schools in other postseason events — notably the NIT, which UConn appeared in several times in the 1950s and 1960s. For example, UConn beat Hofstra in the 1956 NIT, Temple in the 1960 NIT, and Manhattan in a later NIT — but those were not NCAA tournament games.)
Answer:
In the NCAA tournament, UConn had 1 win pre-Calhoun (vs. Princeton, 1951).
  • Additional wins you’re recalling (Temple, Hofstra, Manhattan) came in the NIT, not the NCAA
Expand ...
you do know that chatgpt is quite often incorrect right??
 
RuffRuff said:
They made it to 6 tournaments in 50 years, one win against Princeton. They had a 60% winning percentage against New England state schools. Most of those schools today are low mid major. The Yankee conference was very much a mid major.

They weren't even a blip on the national radar, nevermind NC contender. No non-local historian recognizes a nice brand of basketball against New Hampshire.
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Don’t know where you are getting your info from but a lot of bad info in your post.
 

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