With one notable exception, the UConn women’s basketball team made a short trip down to New York Monday evening to watch as star teammate Azzi Fudd was selected with the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA Draft.
Head coach Geno Auriemma, who greeted former UConn star Paige Bueckers with a hug before she took the stage at last year’s WNBA Draft, was not in attendance for Monday’s event. Fudd was selected by the Dallas Wings, where she will reunite with Bueckers for her debut WNBA season, which will begin next month.
Instead, Auriemma attended a celebration of life event for Norman Myers, the husband of longtime UConn assistant Peggy Myers, who died of brain cancer last month. The ceremony was held in Storrs Monday afternoon, celebrating Norman’s legacy as a former UConn athlete and a lifelong supporter of Huskies athletics.
Peggy Myers, meanwhile, was a player on Auriemma’s first team at UConn in 1985-86 as a senior, leading the Huskies with 16 points and 12 rebounds per game. The 6-foot-2 center reunited with Auriemma a decade later in an administrative role and has worked with the Huskies for the last 31 years, currently serving as a program assistant.
The Myers overlapped as student-athletes at UConn, as Norman spent four seasons on the Huskies football team from 1981-84. He returned to coach football at his alma mater, South Windsor High School, after wrapping up his playing career in Storrs, and was a lifelong presence at Rentschler Field tailgates.
“Though he carried an intimidating presence, those who knew him best understood he was truly a big teddy bear at heart,” Norman’s obituary reads. “He was hardworking, kind, generous, funny, stubborn, and unbelievably loyal. He loved spending time with his family, listening to music, reading, driving the boat, cooking and watching sports. His presence brought energy, laughter, and comfort to those around him. His smile lit up a room.”
Norman is survived by his son, Tommy, who was a three-year starter and team captain for UConn football from 2014-17, and his daugther, Kelly, a trakc-and-field athlete at UConn.