Statement from Geno

[CGK]

Few will want to hear this, but Geno should have retired as king last year. 72 now, and the game is passing him by. He was uncontrollable last night. Kept digging his own ditch deeper in postgame. Contradicting himself and his own players, complaining about a jersey his own player ripped, then crawfishing. Dawn clearly shook his hand before and after the game. Aging Can cause a person to lose his filter and judgement. Hate to see him dwindle into a cranky old man who doesn’t know when to turn in his keys to the gym. The transition from him is both inevitable and soon. The program will die a slow death if he hangs around past his expiration date. Sure, the future without Geno is scary, but a future with him may even be scarier at this point.

Boo on you. The only thing write of what you wrote is that VERY few will want to hear what you wrote. The game is passing him by? Last years NC, this year just crashed in the FF after an unbeaten season up to last night. Yep, he's lost it.

 

[boontonbomber]

I love Geno. Been a fan since my freshman year in 1990. Great coach. Great person.

This apology, the thing this thread is about, was a misstep since it doesn't address Dawn directly by name. You apologize directly to the person that deserves the apology -- by name. Sorry if you don't understand that.

If you want to discuss what another team's coach should be doing, that's another thread.

So very well stated, that it was a further misstep to address it to the staff.

 

[HuskyNan]

 

[JBK]

I haven’t been a defender of Geno on this until now. We all make mistakes. There is never a wrong time to do the right thing. I applaud Geno for

80% of the people on this board don’t watch the men’s team

I hope not — the men are exciting 4 year watch

 

[wyo angel]

Let's face it, nothing short of being boiled in oil will suffice for punishment for the jealous haters. I don't thank you for your disinterest in UCONN basketball.

Exactly; must be a Notre Dame fan.

 

[OviedoFLHusky]

Few will want to hear this, but Geno should have retired as king last year. 72 now, and the game is passing him by. He was uncontrollable last night. Kept digging his own ditch deeper in postgame. Contradicting himself and his own players, complaining about a jersey his own player ripped, then crawfishing. Dawn clearly shook his hand before and after the game. Aging Can cause a person to lose his filter and judgement. Hate to see him dwindle into a cranky old man who doesn’t know when to turn in his keys to the gym. The transition from him is both inevitable and soon. The program will die a slow death if he hangs around past his expiration date. Sure, the future without Geno is scary, but a future with him may even be scarier at this point.

Wow. Ageism much?

In addition, what is not being reported as much is that there are apparently TWO pregame handshake incidents involved. Geno probably overreacted after the game, but let's let ALL the facts come out before judging:

Sports Illustrated’s Michael Rosenberg was in Phoenix on Friday night and noted this about the scenes pregame:

Auriemma said afterward that Staley never shook his hand before the game. I watched this in real time: The P.A. announcer introduced the coaches, Auriemma went over to shake Staley’s hand, and Staley never left her team. Auriemma waited there. He looked at a card he was holding. He waited a bit more.

I don’t know when Staley walked over and shook his hand. She might have shaken it earlier, but if so, she should have done it again when the announcer introduced the coaches. Auriemma was waiting there for a reason. I have no dog in that fight, but I was also wondering why Staley did not walk over. It was weird enough that it registered with me as weird, and I could tell at the time that Auriemma was irritated.

Source: Three Ways Geno Auriemma’s Complaints About Dawn Staley, UConn’s Loss Did Not Age Well

 

[Sluconn Husky]

Feels like Geno's actions were a combo result of the pre-game non-handshake, irritation at Staley in general, and frustration with the both the way the game was called and the end result. Either way, not a shining moment. I have a feeling his statement specifically did not mention Dawn because his biggest regret was grabbing the attention from her players, not what he said about her. Speaking of, I noticed the queen of integrity lathered Raven Johnson with praise after the game, but did not notice her mention the technical that Johnson richly deserved but was not called for. Perhaps Dawn was speaking only about her own integrity and not that of her players.

 

[LGITB]

I wasn't going to share my thoughts, but seeing as everyone else does (which is the point of this board, right?) I'm going to jot down a couple of lines.
Should he have not blown up at her like that? probably not. But, he's human, and errors happen. With the constant issues arising in sports in general and college sports in particular, ie - PED's, mental, verbal and sexual abuse, the mistreatment of players by the organization (remember the whole 2 regions/rims conversation last week?!), turning this into what it has turned to is just ridiculous. It's easier to hang on the actions of one man who is really, really the least of everyone's worries, than deal with the actual issues around sports.

I thought the apology was well written. No, he shouldn't have apologized to Dawn because she is not the focus of their program. It's about the players! not the coach! same as in UConn. It's easy to forget because Geno and CD have been here for so long, but it's UConn, not Geno's summer camp. And it's not about Dawn Staley, it's about SC. Just let this go already and focus on important things. How about talking more about Lauren Betts comments around mental wellbeing? How about talking more about Tory Verdi being sacked? na, it's easier to go after Geno.

And some of the fan base... I'm not preaching blind loyalty, but everyone being so quick to throw Geno under the bus. It's embarrassing.
I've been following the Huskies since 1990 (when Orly Grossman was recruited) and more closely since 1995 when I got to actually see them play and not just read stats in the papers. I have never seen a program with such values and standards in any sports, college, Olympic or otherwise, and it all comes from from Geno and CD.

 

[Sea Goat]

Well, there is no better weekend to be addressing this. Geno's reservoir of good will is almost boundless. He has done great things for UConn both on and off the court. However, all of us, regardless of stature or success, have the risk of developing "feet of clay" occasionally. We are all imperfect living in in an imperfect world! He'll be back better than eve! Isn't that how the promise of Easter Morning should work?

 

[cancontent]

I wasn't going to share my thoughts, but seeing as everyone else does (which is the point of this board, right?) I'm going to jot down a couple of lines.
Should he have not blown up at her like that? probably not. But, he's human, and errors happen. With the constant issues arising in sports in general and college sports in particular, ie - PED's, mental, verbal and sexual abuse, the mistreatment of players by the organization (remember the whole 2 regions/rims conversation last week?!), turning this into what it has turned to is just ridiculous. It's easier to hang on the actions of one man who is really, really the least of everyone's worries, than deal with the actual issues around sports.

I thought the apology was well written. No, he shouldn't have apologized to Dawn because she is not the focus of their program. It's about the players! not the coach! same as in UConn. It's easy to forget because Geno and CD have been here for so long, but it's UConn, not Geno's summer camp. And it's not about Dawn Staley, it's about SC. Just let this go already and focus on important things. How about talking more about Lauren Betts comments around mental wellbeing? How about talking more about Tory Verdi being sacked? na, it's easier to go after Geno.

And some of the fan base... I'm not preaching blind loyalty, but everyone being so quick to throw Geno under the bus. It's embarrassing.
I've been following the Huskies since 1990 (when Orly Grossman was recruited) and more closely since 1995 when I got to actually see them play and not just read stats in the papers. I have never seen a program with such values and standards in any sports, college, Olympic or otherwise, and it all comes from from Geno and CD.

Fans were reacting for this same reason. They're used to the standards that Coach Auriemme and Coach Daly have established. His interaction wasn't of that standard. Wish I had saved it, but Sue Bird discussed this exact point and framed it really well this weekend at the Final Four.

 

[reelfan]

UCONN has always had a guard oriented traditional style of play. Proper execution and team chemistry has been our trademark. The coaches will not allow or tolerate bully ball antics. This is what got us 13 National Championships.

 

[oldude]

I wasn't going to share my thoughts, but seeing as everyone else does (which is the point of this board, right?) I'm going to jot down a couple of lines.
Should he have not blown up at her like that? probably not. But, he's human, and errors happen. With the constant issues arising in sports in general and college sports in particular, ie - PED's, mental, verbal and sexual abuse, the mistreatment of players by the organization (remember the whole 2 regions/rims conversation last week?!), turning this into what it has turned to is just ridiculous. It's easier to hang on the actions of one man who is really, really the least of everyone's worries, than deal with the actual issues around sports.

I thought the apology was well written. No, he shouldn't have apologized to Dawn because she is not the focus of their program. It's about the players! not the coach! same as in UConn. It's easy to forget because Geno and CD have been here for so long, but it's UConn, not Geno's summer camp. And it's not about Dawn Staley, it's about SC. Just let this go already and focus on important things. How about talking more about Lauren Betts comments around mental wellbeing? How about talking more about Tory Verdi being sacked? na, it's easier to go after Geno.

And some of the fan base... I'm not preaching blind loyalty, but everyone being so quick to throw Geno under the bus. It's embarrassing.
I've been following the Huskies since 1990 (when Orly Grossman was recruited) and more closely since 1995 when I got to actually see them play and not just read stats in the papers. I have never seen a program with such values and standards in any sports, college, Olympic or otherwise, and it all comes from from Geno and CD.

One of the themes that some have raised is that any criticism of Geno by UConn fans is unwarranted, “throwing Geno under the bus” or even a betrayal. While some comments may be harsh, the vast majority of UConn fans who have criticized Geno, myself included, expressed similar thoughts to those that he himself expressed in his public apology, “There is no excuse” and “It was uncalled for.”

As a longtime UConn fan, I recognize that Geno is not perfect. I was very pleased that he apologized for his actions after a tough, emotional loss to SC. It permits everyone to move on: the players, the coaches, the fans and, hopefully, the media.

 

[LGITB]

One of the themes that some have raised is that any criticism of Geno by UConn fans is unwarranted, “throwing Geno under the bus” or even a betrayal. While some comments may be harsh, the vast majority of UConn fans who have criticized Geno, myself included, expressed similar thoughts to those that he himself expressed in his public apology, “There is no excuse” and “It was uncalled for.”

As a longtime UConn fan, I recognize that Geno is not perfect. I was very pleased that he apologized for his actions after a tough, emotional loss to SC. It permits everyone to move on: the players, the coaches, the fans and, hopefully, the media.

You would think so, but looking at my timeline (and I know, I know - social media isn't the place to learn about the world) and you would think there is nothing else happening in sports and that he gave the Nazi salute as he walked off the court.
And yes, I do think some of the fans are quite harsh the way the criticized him. No, I don't think what he did was THAT awful, I really don't.
More than that, it's amazing to see the amount of people that crawl out from under their rocks to criticize him now. Reminds me of the chatter around 'The shot' back in '98. People that wouldn't have a second clue about the program and the coaches using this as an opportunity to push their own agenda.
It is what it is, but it sucks to have to see him being crucified like this.

 

[oldude]

You would think so, but looking at my timeline (and I know, I know - social media isn't the place to learn about the world) and you would think there is nothing else happening in sports and that he gave the Nazi salute as he walked off the court.
And yes, I do think some of the fans are quite harsh the way the criticized him. No, I don't think what he did was THAT awful, I really don't.
More than that, it's amazing to see the amount of people that crawl out from under their rocks to criticize him now. Reminds me of the chatter around 'The shot' back in '98. People that wouldn't have a second clue about the program and the coaches using this as an opportunity to push their own agenda.
It is what it is, but it sucks to have to see him being crucified like this.

Nazi salute? Crucified? With all due respect, you seem prone to hyperbole. This discussion is not about the greater problems of the world. There are plenty of other forums where such discussions are appropriate. This is the Boneyard, where fans of UConn WBB discuss all things related to UConn WBB. Geno’s postgame actions and comments are a completely appropriate subject for this forum.

 

[cwh20]

I love Geno. Been a fan since my freshman year in 1990. Great coach. Great person.

This apology, the thing this thread is about, was a misstep since it doesn't address Dawn directly by name. You apologize directly to the person that deserves the apology -- by name. Sorry if you don't understand that.

If you want to discuss what another team's coach should be doing, that's another thread.

The Geno statement was exactly what he wanted to say in my opinion. There is no way he wouldn’t make sure to be clear. So, he must feel that Staley doesn’t deserve an apology. Simple as that. Basketball in general deserved an apology as did the players and staff. Obviously time can change how he feels about the whole thing but right now his statement is where he’s at. I’m with him on this. A statement was certainly called for and he gave one.

 

[oldude]

The Geno statement was exactly what he wanted to say in my opinion. There is no way he wouldn’t make sure to be clear. So, he must feel that Staley doesn’t deserve an apology. Simple as that. Obviously time can change how he feels about the whole thing but right now his statement is where he’s at. I’m with him on this. A statement was certainly called for and he gave one.

He apologized to the SC staff. Dawn heads up that staff. I think it’s splitting hairs to suggest that Geno did not apologize to Dawn. He could have listed every SC coach and player in his apology. I’m fine with the fact that he didn’t.

 

[cwh20]

He apologized to the SC staff. Dawn heads up that staff. I think it’s splitting hairs to suggest that Geno did not apologize to Dawn. He could have listed every SC coach and player in his apology. I’m fine with the fact that he didn’t.

I think staff meant everyone but Staley in this case.