James A. Calhoun (born May 10, 1942 in Braintree, Massachusetts) is the head coach of the University of Connecticut's men's basketball team. He has won three national titles — the 1999 and 2004 NCAA titles, as well as the 1988 NIT championship.

Personal history

Calhoun was born and raised in Braintree, where he was a standout on the basketball, football, and baseball teams at Braintree High School. After his father died of a heart attack when Calhoun was 15, he was left to take care of his large family, including 5 siblings.

Although he received a basketball scholarship to Lowell State (now UMass Lowell), he only attended the school for three months, after which he returned home to help support his mother and siblings. He worked as a granite cutter, headstone engraver, scrap yard worker, shampoo factory worker, and even grave digger.

After an 18-month leave from higher education, Calhoun returned to college, this time at American International College in Springfield, Massachusetts, where he was given another basketball scholarship. He was the leading scorer on the team his junior and senior seasons, and captained the team in his final year, during which AIC advanced to the Division II playoffs. At the time he graduated, he was ranked as the fourth all-time scorer at AIC. Calhoun graduated in 1968 with a bachelor's degree in sociology.

Calhoun and his wife, Pat, live in Pomfret, Connecticut and have two sons and five grandchildren. They have been married since 1967. The couple is well-known in Connecticut for their philanthropy, especially the Pat and Jim Calhoun Cardiology Center at the UConn Medical Center and the annual Jim Calhoun Holiday Food Drive. Calhoun is also very active with Coaches Versus Cancer , the Boys and Girls Club, and the Children's Miracle Network , among other organizations. He has been the honorary chairman of the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation for over a decade.

Early coaching history

A committed Democrat, Calhoun worked on Robert F. Kennedy's presidential campaign in 1968 before taking a head coaching position at Old Lyme High School in Old Lyme, Connecticut. He also taught middle school social studies and served as a constable during his one season in the town. He then moved on to Westport High School in Westport, Massachusetts, where he coached the team for one year. The final high school he coached at was Dedham High School in Dedham, Massachusetts, where his team advanced to the Massachusetts Division I state semi-finals.

Northeastern coaching history

After completing a 21-1 season at Dedham, Calhoun was quickly recruited by Northeastern University in Boston to serve as their new head coach. He took the position in October 1972, and quickly built Northeastern into the dominant power in the ECAC North Atlantic Conference. He also transitioned the team from Division II to Division I.

The team advanced to the Division I tournament 5 times under Calhoun, who also served as a tenured professor of sociology during his 14 years at the university. During his final three seasons, Northeastern achieved automatic bids to the NCAA tournament and had a 75-19 record. He received six regional Coach of the Year accolades at Northeastern and remains the institution's all-time winningest coach (248-137). Future Boston Celtics captain Reggie Lewis, who played for Calhoun at Northeastern, was a first-round NBA Draft pick in 1986.

UConn coaching history

On May 15, 1986, Calhoun was named the head coach at the University of Connecticut. After completing his first season just under .500, Calhoun led the Huskies to their first national title in 1988, defeating Ohio State in the National Invitation Tournament. In 1990, Calhoun was named the consensus National Coach of the Year after leading the Huskies to the Elite Eight and a 31-6 record in only his fourth year at the helm.

Calhoun won his first NCAA national championship in 1999, as he led UConn to its first-ever Final Four and then championship game victory over Duke in St. Petersburg, Florida. The final score was 77-74 in UConn's favor as future NBA standout Richard "Rip" Hamilton lead the team to victory.

Calhoun led the Huskies to another national championship in 2004, at the conclusion of a season that saw UConn start and complete the year as the number one team in the nation. UConn standouts Emeka Okafor and Ben Gordon were selected #2 and #3 in the NBA Draft, respectively. Calhoun now holds a 32-9 record with UConn in NCAA tournament play; they have never lost a First Round or Final Four game.

A total of 18 players Calhoun has coached at UConn have gone on to play in the NBA. They are, from earliest to most recent: Cliff Robinson , Tate George , Chris Smith , Scott Burrell , Donyell Marshall , Donny Marshall , Kevin Ollie, Ray Allen, Travis Knight , Doron Sheffer , Hamilton, Khalid El-Amin , Jake Voskuhl , Kevin Freeman , Ricky Moore , Caron Butler, Okafor, and Gordon.

References

• Calhoun, Jim. Dare To Dream: Connecticut Basketball's Remarkable March to the National Championship ISBN 0767904753

External links

• UConn men's basketball - official website
• Jim Calhoun Basketball Camp - annual summer basketball camp for youth
• Pat and Jim Calhoun Cardiology Center
• Excerpt from Dare to Dream from the Library of Congress