Daniel S. Hurley (born January 16, 1973) is an American men's college basketball coach who is the head coach of the UConn Huskies.[1] In 2023 and 2024, Hurley led UConn to back-to-back NCAA Division I national championships.[2][3] He previously coached at Rhode Island and Wagner.
 Hurley in 2024 | |
| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Head coach |
| Team | UConn |
| Conference | Big East |
| Record | 145–59 (.711) |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | January 16, 1973 Jersey City, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| 1991–1996 | Seton Hall |
| Position(s) | Point guard |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1996–1997 | St. Anthony HS (assistant) |
| 1997–2001 | Rutgers (assistant) |
| 2001–2010 | St. Benedict's Prep |
| 2010–2012 | Wagner |
| 2012–2018 | Rhode Island |
| 2018–present | UConn |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 296–164 (.643) |
| Tournaments | 14–4 (NCAA Division I) 1–1 (NIT) |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| 2× NCAA Division I Tournament (2023, 2024) 2× NCAA Division I Regional – Final Four (2023, 2024) A-10 tournament (2017) A-10 regular season (2018) Big East regular season (2024) Big East tournament (2024) | |
| Awards | |
| Naismith Coach of the Year (2024) Sporting News National Coach of the Year (2024) A-10 Coach of the Year (2018) Big East Coach of the Year (2024) | |
Early life and education
editHurley was born to Hall of Fame high school coach Bob Hurley Sr. and Christine Hurley on January 16, 1973, in Jersey City, New Jersey, where he was raised with his siblings Bobby and Melissa.[4][5] Bobby is a former Duke and Sacramento Kings guard and the current head coach at Arizona State University.[5]
Hurley was a basketball star at St. Anthony High School in Jersey City, where his father was the longtime coach. He led the team to a 31–1 record and a No. 2 national ranking as a senior.[6]
He played five years of college basketball, including a redshirt year, at Seton Hall. He played under head coach P. J. Carlesimo during his first three seasons.[5]
During his years at Seton Hall, Hurley met psychologist Sister Catherine Waters, who changed his life.[7] He often talks with and thanks Sr. Catherine, even after his NCAA championship in 2023.[8]
Career
editHurley was head coach of Saint Benedict's Preparatory School (2001–2010), where he is credited with building the New Jersey school into one of the top high school basketball programs in America.[9]
He was the head coach at Wagner College for two years (2010–2012), where he set the school single-season win-loss record at 25–6 during the 2011–2012 season.[10]
He was then head coach at the University of Rhode Island for six years (2012–2018), bringing the team to the 2017 and 2018 NCAA tournaments, the first times since 1999. Hurley turned down a long-term offer from Rhode Island in order to lead the University of Connecticut Huskies.[11]
From 2010 to 2013, his brother Bobby was one of his assistant coaches at both Rhode Island and Wagner.[12]
University of Connecticut
editHe was named head coach of UConn on March 22, 2018. In 2021, he returned the Huskies to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2016, then again in 2022, losing in the first round both times. He won the NCAA championship with the Huskies in 2023.[13] In June 2023, he agreed to a six-year contract extension with UConn worth $32.1M.[14] In July 2024, he signed an extension worth $50M over six years.[15]
In the 2023–24 season, Hurley led the Huskies to a school-record 37 wins, a Big East regular season title, a Big East tournament championship, a #1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history, and a second-straight NCAA national championship.[16][17][18][19] He was named the Naismith College Coach of the Year and received the Sporting News National Coach of the Year Award.[20][21]
In the days after winning the 2024 Final Four, Hurley received and declined a lucrative head coaching offer from Kentucky.[22] In June 2024 he interviewed with the Los Angeles Lakers, but declined their offer as well, choosing to return to UConn to attempt to win a third straight championship.[23]
Personal life
editHurley married Andrea Sirakides in 1997. They met while they were both students at Seton Hall. They have two sons: Danny (born July, 1999) and Andrew (born January 30, 2002). Danny graduated from Seton Hall in 2021. Andrew attends the University of Connecticut, where he was on his father's 2023 and 2024 NCAA championship teams.[24][25]
On September 6, 2019, Hurley had surgery to replace two disks in his neck with artificial ones. Doctors told Hurley the condition was part hereditary and part the result of years of wear and tear associated with being a lifelong athlete. He returned to work less than two weeks after surgery.[26]
Hurley is a practicing Catholic.[27]
Head coaching record
edit| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wagner Seahawks (Northeast Conference) (2010–2012) | |||||||||
| 2010–11 | Wagner | 13–17 | 9–9 | 6th | |||||
| 2011–12 | Wagner | 25–6 | 15–3 | 2nd | |||||
| Wagner: | 38–23 (.623) | 24–12 (.667) | |||||||
| Rhode Island Rams (Atlantic 10 Conference) (2012–2018) | |||||||||
| 2012–13 | Rhode Island | 8–21 | 3–13 | T–14th | |||||
| 2013–14 | Rhode Island | 14–18 | 5–11 | 10th | |||||
| 2014–15 | Rhode Island | 23–10 | 13–5 | T–2nd | NIT Second Round | ||||
| 2015–16 | Rhode Island | 17–15 | 9–9 | 7th | |||||
| 2016–17 | Rhode Island | 25–10 | 13–5 | T–3rd | NCAA Division I Round of 32 | ||||
| 2017–18 | Rhode Island | 26–8 | 15–3 | 1st | NCAA Division I Round of 32 | ||||
| Rhode Island: | 113–82 (.579) | 58–46 (.558) | |||||||
| UConn Huskies (American Athletic Conference) (2018–2020) | |||||||||
| 2018–19 | UConn | 16–17 | 6–12 | T–9th | |||||
| 2019–20 | UConn | 19–12 | 10–8 | 5th | |||||
| UConn Huskies (Big East Conference) (2020–present) | |||||||||
| 2020–21 | UConn | 15–8 | 11–6 | 3rd | NCAA Division I Round of 64 | ||||
| 2021–22 | UConn | 23–10 | 13–6 | 3rd | NCAA Division I Round of 64 | ||||
| 2022–23 | UConn | 31–8 | 13–7 | T–4th | NCAA Division I Champion | ||||
| 2023–24 | UConn | 37–3 | 18–2 | 1st | NCAA Division I Champion | ||||
| 2024–25 | UConn | 4–1 | 0–0 | ||||||
| UConn: | 145–59 (.711) | 71–41 (.634) | |||||||
| Total: | 296–164 (.643) | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
| |||||||||
References
edit- ^ Goodman, Jeff (March 22, 2018). "Dan Hurley leaving Rhode Island, named head coach at UConn". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on March 22, 2018. Retrieved March 22, 2018.
- ^ "UConn completes dominant run, takes NCAA title". ESPN.com. 2023-04-04. Archived from the original on 2023-04-04. Retrieved 2023-04-04.
- ^ Ronald, Issy (2023-04-03). "Connecticut defeats San Diego State to win its fifth NCAA men's basketball title". CNN. Archived from the original on 2023-04-03. Retrieved 2023-04-04.
- ^ Prajapati, Salim. "Bobby Hurley Three Children and Family Members". Sportslulu. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
- ^ a b c A Little Brother Grows Up, New York Times, Ira Berkow, June 20, 1997. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
- ^ "Dan Hurley". UConn Athletics. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
- ^ "Dan Hurley". NYPost. 5 November 2018. Retrieved 5 November 2018.
- ^ "Dan Hurley". Uconn Huskies Trophy Presentation Ceremony - 2023 NCAA National Championship. 3 April 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
- ^ "Dan Hurley". Wagner College Athletics. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
- ^ "Dan Hurley". Wagner College Athletics. 31 March 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
- ^ "Hurley Steps Down as Head Coach; Search for New Coach to Begin Immediately". The university of Rhode Island. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
- ^ "Bobby Hurley". Coaches Database. Lakefront Digital marketing. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
- ^ Patterson, Chip (4 April 2023). "UConn wins 2023 NCAA Championship: Everything to know about Huskies' dominant March Madness run to fifth title". CBSSports.com. CBS. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
- ^ "UConn, Coach Hurley agree to new 6-year contract worth $32.1 million". NBCCT. NBC. 22 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
- ^ West, Jenna. "UConn gives Hurley new 6-year, $50 million deal". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-07-09.
- ^ Anthony, Mike. "UConn's basketball team wins Big East, talks national title road map". CT Insider. Retrieved 2024-04-09.
- ^ "With its first Big East Tournament title in 13 years, UConn will arrive at Big Dance as beast of the bracket". CBSSports.com. 2024-03-17. Retrieved 2024-04-09.
- ^ Athletic, The (2024-03-18). "UConn No. 1 overall seed". The Athletic. Retrieved 2024-04-09.
- ^ "Connecticut joins elite group of best men's NCAA national champs. Who else is on the list?". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2024-04-09.
- ^ Borges, David. "UConn's Dan Hurley named Naismith Coach of the Year". Connecticut Post. Retrieved 2024-04-09.
- ^ DeCourcy, Mike (March 14, 2023). "Sporting News' College Basketball Coach of the Year: UConn's Dan Hurley living up to his own standard". Sporting News. Retrieved March 15, 2024.
- ^ "Why Dan Hurley turned down Kentucky offer to stay at UConn". FOX Sports. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
- ^ "Sources: Hurley spurns Lakers, stays at UConn". ESPN.com. 2024-06-10. Retrieved 2024-06-10.
- ^ "Dan Hurley's Wife Andrea Hurley – One Of His Biggest Supporter". Celebrity Mirror. ecelebritymirror.com. 29 June 2022. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
- ^ Fleming, Kirsten (March 2021). "Dan Hurley's wife Andrea gives inside look into world of NCAA basketball WAGs". New York Post. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
- ^ Associated Press (18 September 2019). "Spinal surgery gives UConn's Hurley new outlook". ESPN. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
- ^ "Dan Hurley to speak at Catholic Charities Archdiocese of Hartford Help and Hope breakfast in November". Hartford Courant. July 28, 2023. Retrieved April 4, 2024.