Nobody thinks as highly of themselves as Dan Hurley does of Dan Hurley.
And as back-to-back National Champion head coach in this era of college sports — he has good reason to. He’s undoubtedly the next best villain in sports, even if longtime college basketball insider Jeff Goodman thinks he needs to grow up.
The UConn Huskies head coach isn’t fond of referees. He doesn’t take to them like a Husky takes to snow. In fact, it’s the exact opposite. But even if he chews up and spits out officials for breakfast, Hurley is of the belief that people like him are good for sports.
People like him that are condescending and demeaning to referees.
That was Hurley alright. In UConn’s 80-78 overtime win over Butler, Hurley can be seen mouthing off to a referee who turned his back on the Huskies head coach.
“Don’t turn your back on me. I’m the best coach in the f*cking sport”
— Videosareforever99 (@videosaregood) January 22, 2025
Okay then.
But Goodman, who was close to Dan Hurley but has recently been one of Hurley’s harshest critics in the media (when it comes to antics), found his behavior to be anything but okay.
“Listen, I did this a few months ago with Hurley and we haven’t talked since, in full disclosure,” said Goodman during Tuesday night’s The Field of 68 After Dark show. “I’ve known Danny for 25 years. I had him at my prep school tournament when he was at Saint Benedict’s. I like Dan a lot, but I have a hard time liking him at times on the court — I really have. Because, I just don’t think — and [Matt] McCall can jump in on this because he’s got way more insight into this than I do — no matter if you’re pissed off at a call or not, no matter whether you think a ref sucks or not, there’s a way to deal with referees.
“They’re human beings. They miss calls. They’re out there. And I think the other thing is, if you’re yelling and screaming at these guys, and chirping at them the whole time — I’ve always said this — it’s much harder for them to do their jobs. If you’re yelling and screaming at them when a play’s going on, it’s going to be harder for them to focus and get calls right.”
That’s one thing, but the way Dan Hurley talks to officials is another.
“Just the way to he talks to these guys, to me, at times is disgusting,” added Goodman. “It’s disgusting, and it needs to stop. And again, like somebody needs to talk him about this and get him in line. It’s not right. Again, they’re human beings… treat them as such.”
“The way Dan Hurley talks to some of these refs, sometimes, is disgusting. It’s disgusting. It’s not right. They’re human beings. And he’s making their jobs harder” – @GoodmanHoops
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— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) January 22, 2025
But Goodman doesn’t want to lose sight of the fact that Hurley’s a good guy, that he’s actually “charming as hell.”
Just not if you’re an official, it would appear.
“If you get him off the court, I’m telling you, you would absolutely love him and I love him,” Goodman says. “The only thing that I can’t deal with is Dan Hurley versus the refs.”
When McCall, the former head coach at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and UMass asked why Hurley doesn’t get T’d up more, Goodman didn’t hesitate. He said that he knows officials are scared of him, and don’t want to get moved off of games because of him.
So, Dan Hurley may crown himself the best coach in the sport, but to referees, he’s the storm they they’re forced to weather — whether they like it or not. Love him or hate him, college basketball’s ultimate antihero isn’t going anywhere — and his outbursts likely aren’t, either.