Auriemma's Comments About Young Athletes Go Viral

STORRS, CT — Comments about young athletes from University of Connecticut women's basketball coach Geno Auriemma made a while ago have gone viral this week to the tune of more than 39 million views on social media.

Auriemma's comments were made during an 2016 NCAA Tournament news conference. Professional hitting coach Matt Lisle posted the video on his Facebook page on Monday. Lisle said it is not just about baseball in his case and basketball in the case of Auriemma, but young people in general.

"Parents: If you have an athlete above the age of 7 in your household, sit them down and watch this with them for 2 minutes and 38 seconds," Lisle said.

UConn is trying for its fifth national title, its 12th overall and has won 109 games in a row.

Auriemma said that recruiting “enthusiastic kids is harder than it’s ever been.” He said young athletes watch professional basketball, baseball and other sports on TV and see older athletes “just being really cool.”

And that does not necessarily send the right message, he said.

“They haven’t even figured out which foot to use as a pivot foot, and they’re going to act like they’re really good players,” Auriemma said.

The coach added he watches how young athletes behave.

"If we do not like body the language, you will never get into the game," he said.

He added, “They’re allowed to get away with just whatever, and they’re always thinking about themselves ... That’s the world we live in today, unfortunately. Kids check the scoreboard sometimes because they’re going to get yelled at by their parents if they don’t score enough points. Don’t get me started.”

Photo Credit: Facebook