Former WSSU coach lands job at Tennessee State

TSU Assistant Coach Rick Duckett
(Courtesy Tennessee State University Athletics)

Rick Duckett had a record of 73-19 during his three seasons as coach at Winston-Salem State.

Nashville, TN - Rick Duckett, a Winston-Salem native and a former head coach at Winston-Salem State, has been named an assistant basketball coach at Tennessee State. Duckett, who was fired after one season at Grambling State in 2009, spent the past two seasons working for UNC Greensboro as the color analyst for men's basketball games on radio station WZTK-FM (101.1).

He went 6-23 in his one season at Grambling. One of his players died after a conditioning drill in August 2009, and Duckett was fired with three years left on his contract. Henry White, a 21-year-old junior-college transfer, became ill during a preseason workout at which Duckett was not present, and White died 12 days later.

After two seasons out of coaching, Duckett said he's thrilled to be back. Duckett said by telephone Saturday that he hopes his batteries are recharged after being out of coaching for awhile. "If they aren't recharged now, then they never will be," Duckett said. "I'm looking forward to getting back into it, so I'm very appreciative of this opportunity."

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TSU Men's Basketball adds Rick Duckett to staff

Tennessee State University men's basketball head coach John Cooper has announced the hiring of Rick Duckett as an assistant coach. Duckett joins the staff with more than 30 years of coaching experience and after spending the last two seasons as a basketball color analyst for UNC Greensboro on 101.1 WZTK-FM. He has nine years of coaching experience as a head coach with three different programs gathering a career record of 156-98.

"We are extremely excited to have him (Duckett) join our staff with his vast array of experience and success during his coaching career," said Cooper. "He was shaped and molded in one of the great basketball families (North Carolina). We can't wait to benefit from his experience on the bench. He is a first-class person and fierce competitor with an incredible ability to identify with student-athletes."

Cooper and Duckett reunite after working together under two programs. During Cooper's collegiate career as a player at Wichita State, Duckett was an assistant (1987-92) help leading the Shockers to NCAA Tournament appearances in 1988 and 1997 and a N.I.T berth in 1989.

"I'm energized about the opportunity. It gives me clarity and purpose to have a chance to work with young people," Duckett explained. "During my two years away from coaching, I missed the day-to-day interaction with coaches and players. What is also important is the relationship I have with Cooper and I believe in his vision and admire his coaching philosophy."

From 1993-98, Duckett was head coach at Fayetteville State (CIAA) with Cooper serving as an assistant from 1993-95. In his first stint as a head coach, he led the Broncos to a 76-57 record while serving FSU as an assistant athletic director and instructor.

In 1998, Duckett took over the helm at Winston-Salem State (CIAA) until 2001. He posted a remarkable record in his three seasons leading the squad to a combined 73-19 mark while capturing the CIAA championship in 1999 and 2000. Both seasons, he earned the CIAA Tournament Coaches Award and was the 1999 NCAA Division II South Atlantic Coach of the Year.

After WSSU, he served his second term with South Carolina (SEC) Basketball from 2001-08 under head coach Dave Odom. He rejoined the staff after serving in the same capacity for head coach Bill Foster (Rutgers, Utah, Duke, South Carolina, Northwestern) for the 1985-86 season.

From 2008-09, Duckett grabbed the head coaching reins once again when he spent one season at the helm at Grambling State (SWAC) posting a 6-23 record.

In addition, Duckett has spent years as an assistant, coaching for one season at Central Florida (1983-84) and Jacksonville (1983-84). A year prior to the appointments, he spent the first of two stints at R.J. Reynolds High School (Winston Salem, N.C.) returning as a teacher and coach from 1992-93.

Duckett began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at his alma mater, North Carolina (Chapel Hill), from 1979-1980. He received his full-time start as the head coach of the freshman squad at Harvard University from 1980-1982.

Courtesy: Tennessee State Sports Information