“Events conspired against us winning 10 in a row”: Geno Auriemma admits being “drunk on his ego” between 1995 and 2004
Geno Auriemma made UConn a college basketball powerhouse, leading the Huskies to 11 NCAA titles during his tenure as coach. In Brett Ledbetter's "What Drives Winning" series, Auriemma admitted he let that success get into his head when his team won several championships in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Ledbetter asked Auriemma when he was the most drunk on his ego throughout his tenure at UConn. Auriemma paused for a few seconds before replying, giving an honest answer about when his egomaniacal qualities surfaced in "The Psychology of Feedback" episode.
"Probably from 1995 to 2004. During that year when we won a national championship in ’95, lost in the Final Four in ’96, lost in ’97, lost in ’98, lost in ’99, and then won in three out of the next four years," Auriemma said. (Timestamp 1:36)
Most coaches would have been satisfied with that run of dominance, but not Auriemma. He can't accept that the Huskies failed to win 10 consecutive titles during that stretch. They won five national titles during that period, capturing the championship in 1995, 2000, 2002, 2003, and 2004.
"During that time, events conspired against us winning 10 in a row. That’s what I thought because we had the best team in the country for all 10 years. And so I thought the only reason we’re not winning 10 national championships in a row is because we’ve been unfortunate. We’ve lost the wrong kid at the wrong time. Other than that, we would be doing something that’s never been done before and I’m the goddamn reason why," Auriemma said.
Geno Auriemma adds six more NCAA titles to restore UConn's championship tradition
Auriemma and the Huskies crashed back to earth after that 10-year run. They failed to reach the Final Four from 2005 to 2007 and lost to Stanford in the national semifinals in 2008.
The Huskies regained the title in 2009 and embarked on another historic championship run after that. They added to their NCAA trophy collection in 2010 before recording a four-peat from 2013 to 2016. Breanna Stewart cemented her status as one of the greatest UConn players, helping the Huskies win their last four national titles.