EXCLUSIVE: Geno Auriemma and Rebecca Lobo talk UConn's decades of dominance in women's basketball

Hanging out at Fanatics Fest with two people that need zero introduction, but they are the stars of Apple TV's, the dynasty of UConn Huskies, Hall of Fame coach Gina Auriemma and then Rebecca Lobo. Coach, I'm going to start with Rebecca on this one because in that first episode, you were talking about how it was like the golden days of your life. You guys working hard during the week, drinking some Miller Lite's on the weekend before no social media. Hope I didn't give too much away there. But just talk about that experience and give us a story you remember about your days at UConn. I think that was the true experience for us back in those days. We worked really hard. We competed really hard. And then our teammates, we got along so well. We love one another. So when it came to the weekends, we were enjoying our time together. And I think that's one of the things that bonded us. It's one of the things that helped us be a great team. And that's a small part of the story of our journey. And it's exciting that this documentary is out. It's going to show people what really has gone into Coach Orion's incredible success and the program that he's built, the dynasty that he's had, the teams that he's produced, the incredible women who have come through his program to go on and do things and be successful after basketball. And so much of that is the four years that he has them, how he helps mold these women. And I think people are really going to get a chance to see that when they watch the documentary. You did an amazing job of doing that in a way that I feel like couldn't be done today, only by certain people. You're a Hall of Famer. You're a legend. When you first took the job, did you know that was going to have to be your approach to get the details and to get the best out of each player? I think any time you start a project, you don't really know where it's going, right? And you don't even know if you have the right game plan or you're on the right track towards anything. So over a period of time, a couple of years, you start to find what works, what doesn't work. And you start to have to believe in yourself. This is who I am. This is how I explain myself. These are the kind of people I want to be around. And then when you get those people, then you have to do the best you can to try to get the most out of them. And that group that we had at the beginning in 95 that started that championship run, they spent a lot of time together. They spent a lot of time together during the day. They spent a lot of time together at practice. They spent a lot of time together at night, after games, in hotels, in airplanes. They were a very close-knit group. And yeah, did they play really hard? Yeah, they played really hard. They played really smart. And that's our three things on the board, play hard, play smart. And then afterwards, they had a lot of fun. And it's the kind of fun that I wasn't there at, but I know about it. And if they didn't have those kind of moments, then they shouldn't be at UConn. When I was in high school, I was growing up, you were that first celebrity college athlete that we knew about. Now, he's had a bunch of them come through the program. Rebecca Loba is the mentor now. How have you helped the next generation of Lady UConn Huskies? You know, I don't know how much I've helped them. I do know that I'm certainly proud of sort of where I fall in the lineage of it all. You know, that I was the first women's player to have the number retired at UConn will always mean a lot to me. That I was part of that first team to win a championship for UConn means a lot to me. And at the time, I just thought, this is amazing. We won a championship. I didn't know that there was gonna be 11 more. You know, that almost 30 years later, Paige Beckers was gonna be winning her first and sort of walking in the same path that I had walked 30 years before. So, I'm super proud of everything that he and Chris Daly and everyone at UConn have built because they've done it the right way. George, we live in the day of the portal and you've still been able to coach hard and still have the success that you're having. How and why? Again, it starts with getting the right people. It's not a transactional thing in that if I give you more money, you'll come to play here. If I give you even more money, you'll stay here. I want you to come to UConn because you think that's the best place for you to grow. And then once you're there, you're gonna see that there's other people that do it great, don't get me wrong, because there's tremendous coaches and programs out there. But you're not gonna find it better anywhere else. I think too many times you get kids that it's almost like they're testing you. Hey, I'm gonna give this a shot and if it works, great, I'll stay and if it doesn't, I like to do the same thing. I'm gonna try a kid out and if it don't work, I'll see ya. You've been watching this guy coach and have the level of success that he's had for a long time with the way that he coaches. What makes him such a great teacher and a great coach? I think one of his great strengths is his ability to communicate and relate to people. And that includes 18 to 22 year old young women who are kind of learning who they are and finding themselves. It's incredible at getting players and people to understand that there's more that they can give even if they don't think that there is. And that's why you're never going to see again what he's built on the women's college basketball level. You're never gonna see 12 national championships, 25 final fours, 1,400 or whatever it is, plus wins and as those numbers continue to grow, it's just not going to happen again. And also, I think even more importantly, you look at the players who have left this program, not only the success that they've had in the WNBA, but the success that they've had in life and whether it's pushing social justice initiatives or whatever it is, the impact that they've had on their communities at large. His legacy is pretty incredible on all of those levels. Lastly, coach, you've had that fire for a long time. How much longer do you have? How much does that fire keep burning? During the summer, not at all. But I think once you get back to school and you're around your players and you see the energy that they have, the commitment that they have, and as long as I can feel that, as long as I can go in the gym and feel a sense of excitement and the things that stirred you 40 years ago, if they still stir you, which they do, then who knows? But it's not today, but it will be someday. All right, well, congratulations to both of you guys. Make sure you guys go check out the Dynasty UConn Huskies, and that's on Apple TV, August 21st. Thank you guys for your time today. Appreciate you.