"I don't have forever, is this a sign?" - Geno Auriemma gets 100% real on facing public criticism during 9-year drought before 2025 NCAA title

UConn coach Geno Auriemma led his No. 2-seeded UConn Huskies to the National Championship last Sunday after they beat the No. 1-seeded South Carolina Gamecocks 82-59 in the title game. It was Auriemma's 12th national title, but the first one in nine years since 2016.

During Friday's segment of "SportsCenter," Auriemma addressed the criticism that he faced from the public and the self-doubt it prompted after his nine-year natty drought. The 71-year-old explained that things are different when you take nine years to win your second Championship as a young coach.

However, when you have already been super successful throughout your career, people try to link your failures to your seniority. They are quick to claim that the golden days are over and things would only see a decline from that point.

Auriemma said: (3:35).

"When you've won 11 and then you go nine years with a drought. And in Connecticut and the rest of the country, they're like, 'The game has passed him by. He's too old to coach. They haven't adapted to this, this and this.'"

"And then you realize, 'I'm not 45 years anymore, I'm not 55 anymore. I don't have forever. So, is this the sign?' So, yeah, at a certain age, the longer it goes, the more you're reading the tea leaves and they're going, 'Yo, dude, this might be it for you and you need to move on. If this is your goal to win a national championship it may never happen again.'"

The veteran coach expalined that he had not been immune to such self-doubts. That's exactly why this year's Championship means so much to him, because it proves to him that he still has what it takes to lead the Huskies' basketball program.

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Geno Auriemma reveals retirement plans

After winning the national championship on Sunday evening, Geno Auriemma revealed that his 12th natty was his favorite due to the emotional rollercoaster that the team had been through. Over the years, the UConn Huskies have had to deal with season-ending injuries to several of their stars, including Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd.

The game against the South Carolina Gamecocks was a pivotal one for both the coach and the departing Bueckers, who has been the face of Auriemma's team for the past five years.

Despite the Huskies' fairytale natty win, during Tuesday's segment of "TODAY," Auriemma revealed his thoughts on retirement :

"I'm 71 by numbers, but I don't know that I feel that because every day I'm surrounded by young people," Auriemma said. "They can call me gramps or pops or whatever they wanna call me, but at the end of the day, I feel like I'm having an impact on them and they're having an impact on me.

"So, who knows when that morning when I wake up and say, 'Listen, I can't do it anymore.' But I don't see that being tomorrow morning. Let's put it that way."

Even with Paige Bueckers's imminent departure for the WNBA, Auriemma will have the returning Azzi Fudd and talented freshman Sarah Strong as a bedrock for his team next season.