Dan Hurley is a big Bengals fan, but his focus is on Creighton tonight

Feb. 1—STORRS — Dan Hurley is a Kansas City Royals fan of sorts, though he admits he's not a die hard supporter.

The UConn men's basketball coach has often rooted for his alma mater, Seton Hall, though his present job makes that sometimes an occupational hazard.

There is one sports team, however, that Hurley allows his emotions to be controlled by: the NFL's Cincinnati Bengals.

"It's my one real sports team that I really, really follow closely," Hurley said Monday.

Suffice it say that Hurley had an entertaining Sunday afternoon watching his team advance to the Super Bowl for the first time since 1988.

Well, he watched most of the game, anyway.

"I actually missed the first half. My son Danny wouldn't hold the DVR for me and just pause the game," Hurley said.

Dan and his younger son, Andrew, a sophomore guard with the Huskies, were a bit late getting home from the Huskies' game in Chicago against DePaul Saturday night.

The Huskies' charter plane could not land in Hartford in the wee hours Sunday morning because of the heavy snow and was instead diverted to Albany. The Huskies then had to take bus back to campus.

"We didn't get much sleep. We got in at 4 (a.m.)," Hurley said.

Eventually, the whole Hurley family was able to enjoy the Bengals' dramatic victory.

"It was a great moment," Hurley said. "Because I made them become Bengals fans and it wasn't going great for a long time for them. So (Sunday) that was a nice moment."

Hurley's 17th-ranked Huskies take on Creighton tonight in Hartford. UConn (15-4, 6-2) has won five straight games

Although Hurley is as focused on his basketball team and his job as much as ever, he's found time this season to watch the Bengals a great deal.

"This year has been a real outlier for me. Normally the Bengals aren't still playing," Hurley said. "I've never got a chance to see them play this much in December and January, never mind the Super Bowl."

Growing up in New Jersey, it may seem odd that Hurley became a Bengals fan.

But much like when he became a Royals fan in the late 1970s, which was in many ways to spite his father Bob and older brother Bobby, who were rapid Yankee fans, Dan Hurley's affection for the Bengals was about choosing something different from his older relatives.

Bob Hurley Sr. and Bobby Hurley liked the Dallas Cowboys. So when Dan Hurley watched the 1981 AFC Championship game, the so-called "Freezer Bowl," he attached himself to the Bengals.

"It was the Freezer Bowl. And I kind of just loved the helmets," Hurley said. "I was like 7 years old, 8 years old, and I thought they had the coolest uniforms."

The Bengals beat the Chargers 27-7 that day at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati, a game that was played in minus-9 degree weather.

"And then I noticed that not a lot of the Bengals were wearing a lot of long sleeves underneath their uniforms and pads. And the Chargers all were wearing big parkas and long sleeves and gloves," Hurley added. "I was just like 'Wow, those guys are tough. And they have unbelievable uniforms.'

When Boomer Esiason became the Bengals' quarterback a couple years later, Hurley was official hooked.

"And I'm lefty and there's not a lot of lefty quarterbacks. Boomer coming in sort of cemented it," Hurley said.

As great a ride as Hurley has been on watching the Bengals, he insists it's for the most part over.

The Huskies are playing St. John's on Super Bowl Sunday. Hurley insists he's not thinking about that particular basketball game yet, let alone how he might watch the football game later the day.

"I'm really not thinking about them," Hurley said. "It was a nice break (Sunday) for a couple of hours. But once that game was over and I was done running around my living room, I started thinking about (Creighton center Ryan) Kalkbrenner and how to score on him at the rim."

Neill covers UConn men's basketball and UConn football teams, and he keeps a finger on the pulse of Connecticut sports. For live game updates, and more insight into UConn athletics, player transfers, and team changes, follow Neill on Twitter: @NeillOstrout, Facebook: JINeillO, and Instagram: @NeillOstrout.