Grambling to hire Rick Duckett as Men's Basketball Coach

Photo: Grambling State University head men's basketball coach Rick Duckett (Photo by USC SID).

GRAMBLING, LA — Grambling State athletics director Troy Mathieu has announced the selection of Rick Duckett, formerly of the University of South Carolina and a previous NCAA Division II South Atlantic Coach of the Year, as the new head men's basketball coach at Grambling State University. His selection is subject to administrative approval from the Board of Supervisors of the University of Louisiana System.

Coach Duckett served the last six years as an assistant coach at the University of South Carolina under Dave Odom, who recently retired. Duckett served as a head basketball coach at both Winston Salem State University and Fayetteville State University, respectively.

At WSSU, Duckett compiled a record of 73-19, winning two CIAA Titles in three years, prior to moving on to South Carolina and the SEC.

Despite Duckett's success, his one year FSU annual contract was not renewed by athletic director Horace Small in a move that bewildered and angered many members of the Bronco's athletic department. The firing was recorded as one of the all-time dumbest action in FSU history. Duckett left FSU with a 76-57 record in five seasons with one Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association division championship. His 57.1 winning percentage is the highest of any Fayetteville State men’s basketball coach since the school joined the CIAA in 1954 and his final season ended with a 17-10 record.

Here is what South Carolina had to say about Coach Duckett...

An exciting coach to watch on the court because of his love the game, Rick Duckett must have been born with a basketball in his hands.

Rick Duckett is in his sixth season with the Gamecocks. Duckett was head coach at Winston-Salem State for three seasons prior to coming to Carolina and is in his second stint on the USC staff after serving in the same capacity for Bill Foster for the 1985-86 season.

Duckett is responsible for recruiting, scouting, working with the perimeter players in practice, overseeing the academic area for the student-athletes and is the Director of the Offensive Skills Camp in the summer.

Duckett, who also was the head coach at Fayetteville State for five seasons, combines with the rest of the Gamecock staff to give USC three coaches with head coaching experience. Along with Odom (18 years at Wake Forest, East Carolina and South Carolina) and Duckett (eight years at W-S State and Fayetteville State), assistant coach Ricky Stokes was head coach at Virginia Tech for four seasons, giving the USC staff a combined 30 seasons of head coaching experience.

Duckett had a remarkable record at Winston-Salem State in his three seasons there. He led the squad to a combined 73-19 mark Lower right: while capturing the CIAA championship in 1999 and 2000. Duckett had a five-year mark of 76-57 at Fayetteville State (1994-98, leaving his eight-year head coaching tally at an impressive 149-76 (.662). In both 1999 and 2000, Duckett earned the CIAA Tournament Coaches Award, and he also was the NCAA Division II South Atlantic Coach of the Year in 1999.

Duckett earned a Bachelor's degree in Education from the University of North Carolina in 1979 and a Master's degree in Education in 1980 from UNC. In his time at UNC, he served as an undergraduate assistant for the Tar Heels and went on to become the junior varsity coach and a graduate assistant coach during the 1979-80 season.

He continued his coaching career the following season, spending two years as an assistant at Harvard (1981-82) before returning to his high school alma mater, R.J. Reynolds, as assistant coach for one season (1983). He spent one season at Jacksonville University (1984) and at the University of Central Florida (1985) before serving one season on the staff of Bill Foster at South Carolina (1986). Duckett then spent six seasons as an assistant at Wichita State (1987-92), helping lead the Shockers to two NCAA Tournament appearances and an NIT showing. Prior to his head coaching assignment at Fayetteville State (1994-98), he returned to R.J. Reynolds High as an assistant coach for one season (1993).

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