UConn HC Reveals Three Names Behind 30-Year Run
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When UConn Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma spoke to the press before the FSU matchup, he did not want to talk about the number 12. To him, it wasn’t about stacking another championship banner at Gampel Pavilion or adding to his already mythical coaching career.
However, what truly struck him after the 12th national title was the thirty years between the first and the latest, an era-spanning run few in sports history can comprehend. “The number 12 is not a big deal for me anyway,” Auriemma said. “The 30-year gap is a big deal; that generally doesn’t happen.” And he’s not wrong.
In an era where volatility and basketball go hand in hand, it is not easy to sustain that kind of production. Yet, Auriemma, alongside his two constant companions, managed to hold the fort down in Storrs.
Who Are the Two Names Who Have Stood By Geno Auriemma Since 1995?
“The only thing that you can connect that championship (1995) and this championship (2025) to are me, CD (Chris Dailey), and Sarah Darras,” Auriemma said. “We’re the only three people in this world who have any connection to both of those things.”
Auriemma, Dailey, and Darras are three names that have turned UConn into the name it is today. The trio has weathered everything that has been thrown their way for 30 years, from recruiting shifts and cultural changes to social media storms and NIL chaos.
“It’s hard to have that kind of success that far apart,” Auriemma said. “Because things happen along the way.”
And that survival has been as much about the people next to him as it has been about him. Chris Dailey, “CD,” as Auriemma calls her, arrived in Storrs with him in 1985, and she’s been the architect behind every single recruiting class since.
Over 40 seasons, the Hall of Fame associate head coach has built the Huskies' foundation by coordinating recruiting, developing players and maintaining the program’s culture through 12 national championships, 61 conference titles and 24 Final Fours.
In the past, when Auriemma was unavailable, Dailey has stepped in and led the Huskies to a perfect 17–0 record, including multiple BIG EAST Tournament titles. Then there’s Sarah Darras, who joined the staff in 1994 and has managed the chaos behind the curtain.
Darras enters her 31st season as director of basketball administration. She is the logistical backbone of a machine that’s won at an unprecedented level. There’s something poetic about longevity, especially in a sport where turnover is the rule, not the exception.
Geno Auriemma’s Four-Decade Masterclass in Coaching
One cannot discuss longevity without mentioning Auriemma. He has never coached in any other college. When he took the UConn job in 1985, he thought he’d stay for four years. Forty seasons later, he’s the winningest coach in NCAA basketball history, men’s or women’s.
Auriemma hit 1,217 career wins, and that is more than any coach in the college game. The milestone came last November, when UConn blew out Fairleigh Dickinson 85–41 at Gampel Pavilion.
Suddenly, confetti rained, the crowd chanted his name, and his players gifted him a framed jersey emblazoned with “1,217.” Unlike fellow legends Tara VanDerveer or Mike Krzyzewski, who made their marks at multiple programs or levels, Auriemma has done it all in one place.
Paige Bueckers, Caroline Ducharme and Azzi Fudd present Geno Auriemma with a 1217 jersey celebrating his all-time NCAA wins record pic.twitter.com/YZF6Hbu40Y
— UConn on SNY (@SNYUConn) November 21, 2024
That loyalty has been tested. The past few years brought illness, loss, and doubt. There were moments he thought about walking away.
“People don’t do this nonsense for that long,” Auriemma joked,
So, when Auriemma talks about the 30-year gap, he’s marveling at the time, the trust, and the people. The banners hanging in the rafters might carry the UConn logo, but their real signature belongs to three names etched into UConn history.
-fd44250df32912986cc6690f0b8bfa32.png "Shivani Menon")
Shivani Menon is a sports journalist with a background in Mass Communication and a passion for storytelling. She has written for EssentiallySports, College Sports Network, and PFSN, covering Olympic sports like track and field, gymnastics, and alpine skiing, as well as college football, basketball, March Madness, and the NBL Draft. When she's not reporting, she's either on the road chasing sunsets or getting lost in the rhythms of electronic soundscapes.