His high level of passion on the sidelines and heated interactions with referees became defining aspects of his coaching style.

Hurley was a basketball star at St. Anthony High School in Jersey City, where his father was the longtime coach.

[10] He was the head coach at Wagner College for two years (2010–2012), where he set the school single-season win-loss record at 25–6 during the 2011–2012 season.

He was then head coach at the University of Rhode Island for six years (2012–2018), bringing the team to the 2017 and 2018 NCAA tournaments, the first times since 1999.

Hurley turned down a long-term offer from Rhode Island in order to lead the University of Connecticut Huskies.

[16] In the 2023–24 season, Hurley led the Huskies to a school-record 37 wins, a Big East regular season title, a Big East tournament championship, a #1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history, and a second-straight NCAA national championship.

[23] In June 2024 he interviewed with the Los Angeles Lakers, but declined their offer as well, choosing to return to UConn to attempt to win a third straight championship.

[28] During his years at Seton Hall, Hurley met psychologist Sister Catherine Waters, who changed his life.