STORRS, Conn. — When UConn Men’s Basketball won its sixth national championship last month, the entire state celebrated.
As part of that celebration, brand new signs were erected along Interstate 84 east and west in Tolland just before the Exit 68 off ramps that lead to the university. The signs commemorate the newest national championship, as well as the several dozen national championships that were previously won by UConn athletic teams.
The new signs reflect the 11 national championships won by UConn Women’s Basketball, the six national championships won by UConn Men’s Basketball, the five national championships won by UConn Field Hockey and the three national championships won by UConn Soccer.
No stranger to UConn athletics, the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum in Milwaukee has released a new bobblehead, incorporating the national championship sign.
Earlier this year, the museum released a “Basketball Capitol of the World” bobblehead to compliment a UConn collection that honors the 2023 men’s national championship team, as well as various depictions of Huskies mascots Jonathan XIV and Jonathan XV.
The newest bobblehead features Jonathan the Husky standing on a grass textured base in front of the new highway sign listing all of UConn’s national championships.
National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum co-founder and CEO Phil Sklar said in an interview with FOX61 that his operation jumped at the opportunity to create another UConn bobblehead, following the university’s latest athletic achievement. He said UConn’s licensing director loved the idea as well and gave his approval almost immediately.
“The highway sign commemorating UConn’s 25 national championships and counting reminds the millions of people who pass by about UConn’s storied history of titles,” Sklar said. “We’re excited to be unveiling one of the most unique bobbleheads that will be a must-have for alumni, students, faculty, staff and fans of the Huskies.”
Sklar said the museum began preliminary designs for another UConn bobblehead after the men’s basketball team advanced to the Final Four, but the final design wasn't created until days after the title game when the team at the museum saw a picture of head coach Dan Hurley standing next to one of the updated highway signs on social media.
“We immediately knew that we needed to incorporate the sign into a bobblehead,” Sklar said.
Knowing how passionate UConn fans, alumni, students, and the community are about UConn athletics, Sklar said it has been a huge honor to work with a school of UConn’s caliber. Making a bobblehead to commemorate the 25 national titles was an awesome experience for Sklar and the team at the museum.
The highway signs are an inspiration to many people and show that hard work and determination pay off, Sklar said. He added that the fans play a huge role in supporting the student athletes, and the sign is a testament to their role.
Predicting that millions of drivers will pass by the signs, Sklar explained why it is important to portray them with a bobblehead.
“It’s special to be able to make something that people will pass down from generation to generation,” he said. “Kids who drive by that sign on a school bus today could be helping UConn win a title someday and adding to that sign, which is pretty cool. There are also student athletes who drove by that sign growing up and helped UConn win a title, which is pretty amazing to think about.”
Coming up with unique bobblehead concepts like Jonathan the Husky standing next to one of the highway signs is enjoyable for everyone associated with the museum, Sklar said, especially considering how different it is from other creations.
“A lot of the bobbleheads that we produce are a similar style or based on a previous bobblehead that we produced, so it’s always extra special when we have a very unique concept like this,” Sklar said.
Sklar noted that his team has a lot of fun each day creating bubbleheads that will put smiles on a lot of people’s faces.
“Bobbleheads are all about fun, and this one is extra special,” Sklar said. “To be able to create bobbleheads for fans across the country and world to enjoy – whether it’s UConn in this case or a different fan base in other cases – is great. When we started the museum about 10 years ago, we had a long list of bobbleheads we wanted to produce, but we didn’t really dream of being able to produce such awesome bobbleheads like this to celebrate UConn’s tremendous sports legacy.”
The bobbleheads are expected to ship in September and will be available at this link for $45 each plus an $8 flat-rate shipping charge per order.
With each bobblehead, the museum is also including a sticker pack so fans will be able to update the sign as UConn adds more trophies to the display case.
----
Dalton Zbierski is a digital content producer and writer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at dzbierski@FOX61.com.
----
Do you have a story idea or something on your mind you want to share? We want to hear from you! Email us at newstips@fox61.com.
----
HERE ARE MORE WAYS TO GET FOX61 NEWS
Download the FOX61 News APP
iTunes: Click here to download
Google Play: Click here to download
Stream Live on ROKU: Add the channel from the ROKU store or by searching FOX61.
Steam Live on FIRE TV: Search ‘FOX61’ and click ‘Get’ to download.
