UConn's Calhoun relies on former head coach as his top assistant

STORRS, Conn. --You can hear the excitement in the voice of Connecticut assistant coach George Blaney when he talks about the nine new players on Connecticut's roster this season.

For 41 years, Blaney has been a basketball coach. And like head coach Jim Calhoun, he still relishes the opportunity to teach.

"This team is really young and really inexperienced, and really, really are waiting to be taught," he said. "You can almost see it, they're saying, 'Tell me something.' It's fun when you get kids that really want to learn and are open to the things that you talk about."

At 66, Blaney is not the typical college assistant coach. Before agreeing to come to UConn five years ago, he had been a head coach for 27 years, 22 of them at Holy Cross, where he led the Crusaders to three NCAA tournaments and five NITs. He also coached Stonehill, Dartmouth and Seton Hall, compiling a 459-382 record.

He was fired from Seton Hall in 1997 after three seasons.

After taking jobs with the International Basketball League and as an assistant for one season at the University of Rhode Island, Blaney got a call from his old friend, Jim Calhoun.

"You go through a period of time where everybody calls you, and then you go through a period of time where nobody calls you, because they are embarrassed or whatever the reason," Blaney said. "Jim (Calhoun) was one of the few really close friends who always called me."

Karl Hobbs was leaving to become head coach at George Washington, and Calhoun (at the prodding of his wife, Pat) asked Blaney to join him in Storrs.

It seemed to be an odd pairing for Calhoun, who has a reputation as a mentor for his assistants. Several, including Hobbs, Dave Leitao (Virginia), and Howie Dickenman (Central Connecticut) have gone on to become head coaches.

His two other current assistants, Tom Moore and Andre Lafleur, are often mentioned when head coaching positions open.

But Calhoun and Blaney had a different type of relationship. They had been colleagues, friends and golfing buddies for almost 40 years.

"Why wouldn't you take a guy whose spent 40 years coaching and that you like and has great skills, and he acts like a 40-year-old, still hits a golf ball like a 40-year-old?" Calhoun said.

It seems to have worked. The Huskies have won 136 games over the last five years, including the 2004 national title.

Had it been anyone but Calhoun offering, Blaney says he's not sure he would have taken the job. When he was a head coach, Blaney preferred younger assistants whom he could bring along, he said.

But Blaney thought he could work for Calhoun. They both teach a defensive, pressure-style of basketball, and both, Blaney said, are gym rats who preach hard work.

"A lot of our conversations over the years were about basketball philosophy, basketball theory, basketball basketball," he said. "We can spend all day togther talking basketball, and we have."

During practice, Blaney normally works with post players. He also prepares the scouting report on all opponents. But more than that, he's the guy whose office door is always open to talk to players about life, basketball, and yes, coach Calhoun.

"He can call a kid into the office after coaching for 28 years and have a kid see a little different side than I might explain to them, and have him explain me better," Calhoun said. You can't put a price tag on that. You really can't."

Forward Jeff Adrien said it's not exactly like Blaney is the good cop to Calhoun's bad cop, but they are different.

"Coach Blaney doesn't swear and yell as much, he does it in other ways than coach Calhoun does," he said. "He talks to you about the goals you want to reach, and he helps you translate that out on the court."

Calhoun said Blaney also serves as a sounding board, and isn't afraid to say what he thinks.

"I can't think of anything he would say that I wouldn't take. Will I agree with all of it? No. Will I disagree with some of it? Sure," Calhoun said. "But none of that makes any difference. He will say things that stimulate thought of whether I'm doing the right thing, or not doing the right thing."

Calhoun says the best part about having Blaney around is that he knows that if he gets sick or needs to step away for whatever reason, the program is in great hands.

He's gotten calls from coaches all across the country, who are considering a similar setup.

Kelvin Sampson, for example, recently hired former Liberty and Butler coach Jeff Meyer as an assistant at Indiana.

"Guys are starting to move toward this," Calhoun said "You have a guy like this if you want some normalcy to your life."

That's not to say there is any question as to who is in charge at Connecticut. The program has just one voice at practice and at the games, Blaney said, and that's Calhoun's.

Blaney said he does miss having his own team, but has told his friends that if he ever takes another job, they'll know he's gone crazy.

"This is just a great situation," he said. "There's no better place to be if you love basketball."