Geno Auriemma and Caitlin Clark crossed paths multiple times during the Iowa Hawkeyes’ remarkable collegiate career. After four years at Dowling Catholic High School in West Des Moines, Iowa, where she even became a soccer star, Clark was set to start her college career.
She had a strong desire to join Auriemma’s UConn Huskies, but the coach or any official from the program never reached out to her or her family. Her options narrowed down to Notre Dame and Iowa. While the Fighting Irish appeared to have the upper hand in the race to recruit Clark, she wasn’t sold on the project.
It was after a phone call with Lisa Bluder that Clark decided to commit to Iowa, where she became one of the best women’s college basketball players of all time.
She faced off against Auriemma’s Huskies several times, including a close 71-69 win over UConn during the 2023-24 season, Clark’s senior campaign. That Final Four win allowed the Hawkeyes to advance to the national championship, which they lost to the South Carolina Gamecocks.
Geno Auriemma wanted Caitlin Clark to reach out to recruit her
In an interview with CT Insider last year, Geno Auriemma shed light on why he didn’t recruit Caitlin Clark to his Huskies. The 12-time national champion cited that having Paige Bueckers ready to lead the backcourt made it complicated to add Clark to the roster.
Caitlin Clark is struggling with a groin injury
“Well, there’s a lot of kids we didn’t recruit and there’s a lot of kids who don’t want to go to UConn,” Auriemma said. “I committed to Paige Bueckers very, very early and it would have been silly for me to say to Paige, ‘Hey listen, we’re going to put you in the backcourt and then I’m going to try really hard to recruit Caitlin Clark.’ I don’t do it that way.”
The move paid off for Auriemma, as Bueckers became a UConn legend, a national champion, and the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA Draft.
