Knickerbocker’s friend and fellow alum Noah Geisel described being a Duke basketball fan as “belonging to greatness.” He graduated in 2001, the year the team won its third national championship.
In his four years at Duke, Geisel only missed two home games at Cameron Indoor Stadium. From the beginning of this season, he knew “in his heart” that he would be traveling to San Antonio for the Final Four to support his team, just as he had in his college days.
“You don’t have to be great at basketball to be a great Duke basketball fan,” Geisel said.
And for many of these alumni, that is the crux of Duke’s basketball appeal. Though most will never get the chance to play on the court of Cameron Indoor, they all have the chance to cheer loudly in the stands, to hex opposing players as they attempt to inbound the ball, to put their arms around each other and sing the alma mater with pride after every win and even each loss. Those memories leave many alumni eagerly anticipating the chance to come back for more.Fleming’s favorite memory came from cheering at the national championship game in 2010 when the Blue Devils, led by current head coach Jon Scheyer, defeated Butler.
“I remember sitting on the court and gripping my poms,” Flemming said. “I still get nervous watching videos of that shot. I know it’s not gonna go in, but I still remember how I felt in that moment.”
In the years since her graduation, she and her brother have continued to travel to basketball games just as they did in college, supporting Duke across the country.
“It’s more than just basketball,” Flemming said. “It’s the community and the camaraderie of the Duke spirit.”
Paul Knickerbocker, Pratt ‘00, has used traveling to basketball games as a way to reconnect with his former classmates.
“I just used it as a vehicle to reunite with friends and have that common thread, to share that common experience,” Knickerbocker said.
After enjoying his experience in the Final Four in Phoenix last year with fellow alumni — despite the team’s absence — Knickerbocker decided to follow the Blue Devils around this year in the hopes that the 2024-25 squad would work its way to San Antonio. Although his road experience with the Blue Devils was “hectic,” Knickerbocker enjoyed attending the alumni events in the different cities he went to and explained that supporting Duke gives him “a sense of belonging.”
“It’s something that you feel that’s bigger than yourself,” he said.
Several other alumni echoed the sentiment that for them, Duke basketball is like another home, something to support and hold onto in the good times and the bad.
“It gives you something to look forward to every year,” Brian Steward, Trinity ‘87, said. For many fans, the calendar revolves around watching Duke basketball, around watching each and every game with eager anticipation.
It doesn’t hurt that fans rarely have to watch their team suffer through long losing stretches.
“It’s nice to be part of the group,” Knickerbocker said. “And it’s part of the winning group.”
