Duke Homecoming Weekend a Town-Gown Touchdown
Events kick-off Thursday with Bull City Football Fest at Durham Athletic Park
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
DURHAM, N.C. -- Duke goes head to head for the first time in its football history with Durham neighbor North Carolina Central University (NCCU) during Duke’s Homecoming Weekend Sept. 25-27.
In addition to the game and a Thursday pep rally at the Durham Athletic Park, numerous other events -- including a Habitat project involving Duke and NCCU students, basketball clinics led by former Duke All-American Jay Williams and pre-game festivities outside Wallace Wade Stadium -- will bring Durhamites together both on campus and in the community.
Tickets are still available for the game. Tickets are still available for $25 each and can be purchased by calling 1-877-375-DUKE or at www.goduke.com. Duke employees are eligible for the Employee Athletic Pass.
"This game is a long time in the making and will be an important and historic moment for Duke, NCCU and the City of Durham," said Duke President Richard H. Brodhead. "It will be an exciting game and a wonderful weekend for the entire community."
Thursday’s Bull City Football Fest pep rally for the game begins at 5:30 p.m. at the Durham Athletic Park, 428 Morris St., and will include remarks from Duke Head Football Coach David Cutcliffe, NCCU Head Football Coach Mose Rison and Durham Mayor William V. “Bill” Bell.
Free and open to the public, the event features food vendors, local artists and performances by local bands and student groups from Duke and NCCU. Coaches, players, bands, mascots and cheerleaders from both schools will participate in the carnival-like atmosphere.
"This is an exciting opportunity for both institutions and the Durham community," said NCCU Chancellor Charlie Nelms. "It is my hope that this is the beginning of one of the strongest cross-town rivalries in the Southeast."
Other key events include:
Friday, Sept. 25
-- 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., John Hope Franklin Center, Room 240. The half-day event “Talking About Sun Ra” includes a conversation between Duke associate professor of English Fred Moten and members of the Sun Ra Arkestra, and a panel discussion with curators of the exhibition “Pathways to Unknown Worlds: Sun Ra, El Saturn, and Chicago’s Afro-futurist Underground 1954 – 68.” Information: fhi.duke.edu.
-- 7 p.m., Page Auditorium. Duke’s National Pan-Hellenic Council presents the 2009 Homecoming Step Show. General tickets are $12; $10 Duke students. Information: Duke Box Office 684-4444; tickets.duke.edu.
-- 8 p.m., Reynolds Industries Theater, Bryan Center. Corey Harris Quintet and James “Blood” Ulmer Trio. General tickets are $28 and $22; $5 for students. Information: 660-3357; dukeperformances.duke.edu.
Saturday, Sept. 26
-- 8 a.m. to noon, Community Service Projects, Habitat for Humanity house at the corner of Carol Street and Morehead Avenue, and a separate project with the Durham Rescue Mission. Students from NCCU and Duke will participate.
-- 9 to 11:30 a.m., Emily Krzyzewski Family Life Center. Basketball clinics for 5th and 6th graders with former Duke basketball star Jay Williams.
-- 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., East Campus Main Quad. North Carolina Pride Festival and Parade.
-- 1 to 3:30 p.m., Emily Krzyzewski Family Life Center. Basketball clinics for 7th and 8th graders with former Duke basketball star Jay Williams.
-- 1:30 to 3 p.m., Griffith Film Theater, Bryan Center. Panel discussion, “The End of Civilization as We Know It? The Future of Reading,” featuring Sven Birkerts, the author of “The Gutenberg Elegies;” Lynn Neary, a national correspondent for NPR’s Arts and Information Unit; Julie Tetel Andresen, ’72, associate professor of English at Duke and author of “Linguistics Reimagined: Language Study for the 21st Century;” Philip Bennett, former managing editor of the Washington Post and newly appointed professor of the practice of journalism at Duke; and Andy Berndt, ’89, managing director of the Creative Lab at Google. The panel will be moderated by Deborah Jakubs, Rita DiGiallonardo Holloway University Librarian and Vice Provost for Library Affairs at Duke.
-- 4:30 p.m., Blue Devil Walk from Perkins Library to Wallace Wade Stadium. Blue Devil Alley, Duke’s pregame festivities area outside the North Gate of Wallace Wade Stadium, will feature a live band, inflatable games, concession vendors and more.
-- 7 p.m., Wallace Wade Stadium. The Bull City Gridiron Classic: Duke vs. North Carolina Central University. Tickets are still available for $25 each and can be purchased by calling 1-877-375-DUKE or at goduke.com.
-- 7 p.m., Page Auditorium. Sun Ra Arkestra and Mingus Big Band. The concert will be broadcast live on WNCU 90.7 FM. It is presented in conjunction with the exhibition “Pathways to Unknown Worlds: Sun Ra, El Saturn, and Chicago’s Afro-futurist Underground 1954 – 68” at the Durham Art Guild, through Oct. 18. General tickets are $32, $26 and $20; $5 for students. Information: 660-3357; dukeperformances.duke.edu.
Sunday, Sept. 27
-- Noon to 4 p.m., Nasher Museum of Art. Free Family Day. Live entertainment by Rags to Riches Theatre for Young Audiences, hands-on projects and gallery guides. Limited free tickets available at the door only. Information: 684-5135; nasher.duke.edu.
Events are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted. Visitors to Duke’s campus should allow extra time for parking. More information about the weekend’s activities can be found at homecoming.dukealumni.com or on the Events@Duke website, calendar.duke.edu.
