Norm Nixon arrived at Duquesne in the mid-1970s as a Georgia-bred teenager so ill-prepared for the cold Pittsburgh winters that all he had to keep himself warm was a single-layered coat without a liner (his “Superfly” coat as he called it, in reference to the popular 1972 movie).
By the time he left, he had accomplished more than perhaps any player in the school’s history. That would be just the first chapter in a storied career that saw him win NBA championships, make All-Star teams and even appear in a major motion picture.
One of his most enduring marks, though, may be what he and his team were able to accomplish his senior season in 1977 — making the NCAA tournament, a destination the Dukes haven’t reached since.
The drought is a persistent reminder of where the program is and the fall it endured, with Nixon standing as an artifact of a brighter, more accomplished past. But as Duquesne boosters, former players and others — including the current team and coaching staff — convened Wednesday night at Consol Energy Center to celebrate the program’s upcoming 100th season, Nixon and others who helped build the Dukes believe there’s a way back.
“They’ve got to get the support from the school and the student body needs to be excited,” Nixon said. “There’s no reason that arena shouldn’t be full for every game. They have to create an exciting brand of basketball. Once you develop that type of reputation, it’s easier to recruit better players and the better the players, the more exciting it’s going to be. You know how most people are — if you win, they’re going to come. You have to create a winning team.”
In his brief time in Pittsburgh this week, Nixon and others such as former Dukes standout Mike James spent time on campus and around the current team, taking in practices and speaking to the players. Nixon believes there is potential.
“I watched these guys,” he said. “They’re great athletes and they work hard. Now they have to translate that into some wins out on the court.”
As current coach Jim Ferry enters his fourth season with the program, some believe this current team could represent a step forward, likely not to the NCAA tournament, but to somewhere greater than it was the past three years when it compiled a 33-58 record.
With two seniors, Micah Mason and Derrick Colter, anchoring the backcourt, and with a handful of talented newcomers, Duquesne was picked 11th in the Atlantic 10 Conference preseason poll, released this week.
The conference itself presents a difficult obstacle, but even for new athletic director Dave Harper, who officially has been on the job for three weeks, there is a belief in the building process.
“What you have to do is stair-step it the right way, get the right players and build continuity,” Harper said. “If you look at his backcourt this year, he’s got kids that have a lot of games and he’s got young kids that can play roles and learn. He’s getting kids interested in Duquesne earlier than they’ve ever been.”
James, 40, still is mulling whether to play another season of pro basketball, but whatever he decides to do, he plans on strengthening his bond with Duquesne. In the meantime, program icons such as himself and Nixon will wait for when their school can achieve the goal it has been denied for so long.
“I want to talk some smack in California,” Nixon said.
Craig Meyer: cmeyer@post-gazette.com and Twitter @CraigMeyerPG.
First Published: October 22, 2015, 4:00 a.m.