UConn signs Hall of Fame coach Auriemma to five-year extension
UConn signs Hall of Fame coachs competition in women’s college basketball intensifies, UConn will continue to be led by one of the best coaches in the sport’s history for at least the next five years.
UConn Athletics Director David Benedict announced Tuesday that the school has signed head women's basketball coach Geno Auriemma to a five-year contract extension.
The extension, which runs through April 2029, is valued at $18.7 million over the five-year term and includes the opportunity to earn additional compensation in the form of performance-based incentives.
Auriemma will receive a base salary of $400,000 per year, and an additional compensation for speaking, consulting and media obligations of $2.94 million for the 2024-25 season, which increases by $200,000 each year through the term of the contract, UConn said.
"Coach Auriemma has dedicated over half of his life to UConn and our women's basketball program and will undoubtedly be known as one of the greatest collegiate coaches of all time,” Benedict said. “His presence, dedication and loyalty to this university and state is priceless and will be critical as we enter the most transformational period in college athletics in the past 40 years."
Auriemma will enter his 40th season at UConn in 2024-25. Under Auriemma, the Huskies' have won 11 NCAA Championships, competed in 23 NCAA Final Fours, completed six perfect seasons and won 59 conference championships.
Auriemma has been named Naismith National Coach of the Year eight times, AP National Coach of the Year nine times, WBCA National Coach of the Year seven times and conference coach of the year 17 times.
A 2006 inductee to both the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and Women's Basketball Hall of Fame, Auriemma currently ranks second in Division I college basketball history with 1,213 career wins.
“I feel like there's so much more that can be done, and will be done, and I'm excited to be the one to do it with my staff and my team,” Auriemma said. “I'm probably as excited about these next few years as I've ever been over the last 40."
Article written by Greg Bordonara | Photo credit: Anna Labonte
Article published in the Hartford Business Journal | June 5, 2024
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