- Joined
- Oct 17, 2011
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In recent weeks, those of us who are apparently deemed among the uninformed have been treated to a variety of posts by our peers on the Boneyard who seek to edify us as to the decline in the fortunes of UConn WBB. We have, lucky us, had the news “broken” to us that the current team falls short of the standard set by previous teams, that the coach can no longer recruit, and that the prospects for next season and those that follow are hopelessly dim.
For good or for ill, other than the possible exceptions of death and taxes, it comes as no surprise, even to the less insightful like us, to learn that nothing in life lasts forever. Unfortunately for Husky fans, that reality, alas, extends even to sports dynasties. The Geno Auriemma era is far from over, and, contrary to the general view, it may well yet yield another national championship or two. Still, age and inevitability ultimately catch up to each of us, and, by any reasonable measure, the unparalleled dynasty that Geno created is now in its twilight years. The landscape of WCBB has been irreversibly altered, mostly in good ways, and largely as a result of the heightened interest in the sport that this most extraordinary of coaches developed. National parity is on the rise, and the overall quality of play is dramatically both improved and better distributed. As the gap between the previously more elite and less elite programs narrows (this is a good thing, really!) so does the overwhelming recruiting advantages once enjoyed by a few dominant programs. Unsurprisingly, no coach can remain the same recruiting beacon that he or she once was as certain age and achievement thresholds are passed.
Sports dynasties are usually superseded by new, emerging dynasties. That may be the case in WCBB going forward, but any such future dynasty, relatively speaking, will have to be writ small, beginning with a small d. This is because the extraordinary magic carpet ride to which we Husky fans have been treated for so long will NEVER be repeated or duplicated. Elsewhere on this forum, a poster, declaring that parity in the game has arrived, blamed that felicitous development mainly on Geno. I concur. But, ill-advisedly, that poster casts this contingency in terms of Geno’s “failure.” Just the opposite is true. This is the predictable result of this coach’s once-in-a-lifetime success. There are those who prefer inequity in the game, that UConn continues to enjoy unprecedented success in a woefully unbalanced environment. I’m not among them. I’m going to continue to be an ardent fan of UConn WBB even after the current era comes to a close. I sincerely hope that, having tasted success like no other program, the guiding forces at UConn continue to dedicate the resources to WBB that will keep UConn among the elite teams in the sport for many years to come. But I will always remember, with great fondness, who brought about the elevation of the women’s game that created this intense competitive parity!
For good or for ill, other than the possible exceptions of death and taxes, it comes as no surprise, even to the less insightful like us, to learn that nothing in life lasts forever. Unfortunately for Husky fans, that reality, alas, extends even to sports dynasties. The Geno Auriemma era is far from over, and, contrary to the general view, it may well yet yield another national championship or two. Still, age and inevitability ultimately catch up to each of us, and, by any reasonable measure, the unparalleled dynasty that Geno created is now in its twilight years. The landscape of WCBB has been irreversibly altered, mostly in good ways, and largely as a result of the heightened interest in the sport that this most extraordinary of coaches developed. National parity is on the rise, and the overall quality of play is dramatically both improved and better distributed. As the gap between the previously more elite and less elite programs narrows (this is a good thing, really!) so does the overwhelming recruiting advantages once enjoyed by a few dominant programs. Unsurprisingly, no coach can remain the same recruiting beacon that he or she once was as certain age and achievement thresholds are passed.
Sports dynasties are usually superseded by new, emerging dynasties. That may be the case in WCBB going forward, but any such future dynasty, relatively speaking, will have to be writ small, beginning with a small d. This is because the extraordinary magic carpet ride to which we Husky fans have been treated for so long will NEVER be repeated or duplicated. Elsewhere on this forum, a poster, declaring that parity in the game has arrived, blamed that felicitous development mainly on Geno. I concur. But, ill-advisedly, that poster casts this contingency in terms of Geno’s “failure.” Just the opposite is true. This is the predictable result of this coach’s once-in-a-lifetime success. There are those who prefer inequity in the game, that UConn continues to enjoy unprecedented success in a woefully unbalanced environment. I’m not among them. I’m going to continue to be an ardent fan of UConn WBB even after the current era comes to a close. I sincerely hope that, having tasted success like no other program, the guiding forces at UConn continue to dedicate the resources to WBB that will keep UConn among the elite teams in the sport for many years to come. But I will always remember, with great fondness, who brought about the elevation of the women’s game that created this intense competitive parity!
