After the University of Connecticut Huskies took home the NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Tournament, head coach Dan Hurley admitted he missed a rather important phone call…
Since 1976, collegiate champions always receive an invite to the White House to meet the President. In early April, the UConn men’s basketball team proudly defeated San Diego State University in a 76-59 win. With this being said, the Huskies head coach revealed he didn’t exactly expect the United States President to give him a personal congratulatory phone call.
“It doesn’t come up on your caller ID like Joe Biden,” Hurley told The Athletic in a recent interview. “I just assumed when the President calls, it would be someone interrupting your call saying, ‘The President is on the line.’ … I got a voicemail.”
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However, a visit to the White House is not the only exciting gift that Hurley gets to receive. In addition to meeting the President, the UConn coach, who is the fifth coach in the history of the men’s basketball program to take home a championship title, gets a $150,000 bonus with the victory, according to USA Today‘s Steve Berkowitz.
“He ends season with $500,000 in bonuses (with $100,000 more possible, at AD’s discretion) to go with a 2-year contract extension and additional $100,000 raise,” Berkowitz announced on Twitter.
Huskies head coach Dan Hurley says he received the keys to Jersey City following the championship win
On top of all these exciting advantages, Hurley also shared he was gifted the keys to his hometown, Jersey City. Citing the city as the reason for his success as a men’s basketball coach, receiving the keys to Jersey City was a particularly exciting consequence of winning the 2023 National Championship title.
“I’m just lucky that I’ve got an amazing wife, Andrea, and I have two incredible sons in Danny and Andrew that are tough, strong Jersey people that can handle both the internal and external anxiety and pressure that you feel by being in such a prominent position,” Hurley stated in the midst of the tournament run, according to Yahoo! Sports.
He added the sentiments, “The way my dad, and the way Jersey City raised me and my brother… it doesn’t faze me even when it hits its lowest. Obviously, you get down at different times, but when you’re as tough as Hurley’s are, as people, it’s not that bad.”
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