Dave Harding

[Ima Facultiwyfe]

I'm a great fan. I notice he's been sitting with Bob Harris for broadcasts lately, Sure hope he has a future with the mic for Duke sports. I'm sure he knows football. What about basketball? Anybody have any inside info?
Love, Ima

[DukieInKansas]

I noticed him there during one of the games last weekend and wondered the same thing. Will be interesting to watch.

[chrishoke]

I love Dave, but he has zero play by play experienve.

[monarch34]

I love Dave, but he has zero play by play experienve.

Bob Harris undoubtedly didn't have any experience either when he first started and, let's face it, in recent years, Bob's play-by-play was not something anyone could rely upon. Bob's loyalty to Duke and lifelong service got him a pass. Dave is also highly loyal to Duke and I think Dave is an exceedingly smooth talker and his voice is easy to listen to. If he wants the job, I would love to give him a try.

[Henderson]

My house does not have a television set, but I stream almost every game live via radio. That has been an extremely frustrating experience these past few years. I was reminded how bad it had gotten when I streamed the NCAAT games on Sirius/XM, which had its own professional play-by-play announcers. Cool water on a feverish forehead.

So for me, the radio play-by-play is more important than to most fans. For that reason, having someone who is an institution hang around a bit too long isn't quaint.

I've been a fan of Dave Harding since he first started doing pieces right after he graduated. And he seems like the smart sort of guy who would study up, practice hard at it in advance, scout out the gig by seeing it done, and end up being really good. The folks at IMG will make the call as to who replaces Bob Harris, and they don't mess around. I feel pretty sure that if they hired Dave Harding to do basketball play-by-play, it would be because Dave Harding proved to them he could do it.

Of course, we don't know that's why Dave Harding has been sitting next to Bob Harris. They may be scouting him as a color guy to go with someone else as play-by-play.

[hallcity]

Harding has been working on the Blue Devil Network. Anybody know if he's been doing any play by play there?

[OldPhiKap]

Harding has been working on the Blue Devil Network. Anybody know if he's been doing any play by play there?
Dunno, but I've always thought of him more as the color guy.

I like Dave, he has a bright future.

[burnspbesq]

If Duke is grooming a pxp replacement in-house, as opposed to conducting an outside search, it's more likely Ryan Craig, who has been doing a wide variety of sports for ACC Network Extra.

[Henderson]

I'm bumping this thread in appreciation of Dave Harding.

As someone who listens to games on the radio, I rely unusually on the announcers compared with those who watch on TV. There have been challenges in that regard.

Dave Harding is a terrific color analyst. Knowledgeable, insightful, prepared, and well-spoken. I'm sorry he's not yet slated for that role in men's basketball broadcasts, but I have hope.

On a related matter, I love Bob Harris. I grew up with the guy. This from goduke.com:

On the hardwood, Harris has called 1,358 Blue Devil basketball games including 104 tilts in the storied Duke-North Carolina rivalry. He has worked 13 NCAA Final Four events while calling 10 championship games including all five of Duke’s national titles in 1991 (Indianapolis), 1992 (Minneapolis), 2001 (Minneapolis), 2010 (Indianapolis) and 2015 (Indianapolis). Harris also has broadcast 16 ACC Tournament championship game victories for the Blue Devils in 1978, 1980, 1986, 1988, 1992, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010 and 2011.

And that doesn't even list the many other (general or football) accolades.

But for the modern radio listener, Dave Shumate is better. I'm not listening to a Duke legend, but I'm getting the info I need.

But I'm particularly interested to see where Dave Harding goes. I think this guy could be a star.

[Ima Facultiwyfe]

Thanks for the bump re: Harding. He's a gem. I'm hoping, too, that he can work basketball. Football is a natural for him but he's so dang smart I bet he can make the transition in a heartbeat.
Love, Ima

[budwom]

For certain Harding is terrific, and Shumate is a gigantic improvement for those who are interested in what actually happened on the football field.

[CameronBlue]

For certain Harding is terrific, and Shumate is a gigantic improvement for those who are interested in what actually happened on the football field.

Bob and Wes couldn't have passed the torch to a more capable team.

[jimsumner]

Here's an article I wrote about Dave when he was still playing. An interesting guy, interesting journey.

http://www.goduke.com/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=205317515

[sagegrouse]

Here's an article I wrote about Dave when he was still playing. An interesting guy, interesting journey.

http://www.goduke.com/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=205317515

Quick summary: He's six years old and the family moves to a rural area in the country of Jordan for six years, where Dave went to an Arab language school. When he came back to the US in the 8th grade, he was like an Arab kid new to the U.S.

Not your average background for a college football center.

[Reilly]

... Shumate is a gigantic improvement for those who are interested in what actually happened on the football field.

But does he address the most critical aspects of the game, like whether punts are tail-draggers?