While I was working on some UConn football stories inside Gampel Pavilion on Tuesday, Geno Auriemma emerged after watching a workout so I naturally took the opportunity to sit down with him to get caught up on some things.

I think people will be encouraged by what the Hall of Fame head coach had to say about the work ethic, attitude and karma surrounding the 2012-13 Huskies.


"I really like the fact that they go above and beyond what you ask them to do, it seems like," Auriemma said. "I am watching  their conditioning, I am watching them work and I am looking at it saying 'man, there are years some guys are trying to take a short cut. The seniors can't wait to go work out and the freshmen they are psycho workout guys too so there is really nobody creating a bad karma. This group if you ask them to do 10 reps, they want to 15. If you ask them to show up at 6 o'clock there are there at quarter of. They just have a tremendous group dynamic that I can sense already.

"Kiah (Stokes), Kaleena (Mosqueda-Lewis), Brianna Banks it was hard for them (as freshmen). Now they come back this year and they look like different people. Brianna Banks is a different person, Kiah Stokes is a different person. There are no issues. The playing part I don't pay too much attention to that, I just look at the workouts and how they interact with Shea, Marisa, CD and each other, what they are doing in the morning and afternoons with Amanda Kimball, our strength and conditioning coach. Right now everything I see has me really excited."