The cash-strapped University of Connecticut won’t need state assistance to close a multi-million dollar contract with Dan Hurley, according to Gov. Ned Lamont.
As the UConn Huskies men's basketball coach, Hurley won back-to-back NCAA championships.
He turned down a $70-million offer from the LA Lakers to stay in Connecticut and try for a third NCAA championship while making less over the next few years.
Hurley signed a six-year, $32.1 million deal with UConn after the 2022-23 season, which is now being revised.
“You know this is a negotiation between Dave Benedict, who runs athletics at UConn and Dan Hurley. I think they are very close to the finish line. I'm just very pleased that Dan Hurley is calling Connecticut home,” said Lamont.
He is confident UConn will not need state assistance to sweeten the deal.
“Uconn has got to figure that out. As you know, we have a big ARPA increase in terms of state aid for UConn. I think they are going to figure that out. I’m just really pleased that Dan Hurley is going for the three-peat,” said Lamont.
UConn had projected a deficit of more than $150 million for fiscal year 2025. However, additional funding from the state’s American Rescue Plan Act, approved by the state General Assembly, reduces that deficit to about $32 million.
In the meantime, UConn’s women’s basketball coach, Geno Auriemma, has signed an $18.7 million contract extension to coach the 11-time national champion Huskies for another five years.
