Best Duke Athlete?

[hallcity]

I think Nancy Hogshead may have the strongest claim. She won three gold medals and a silver at the 1984 summer Olympics as a swimmer.

[uh_no]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curtis_Beach

[uh_no]

Save some room on that list for Becca Ward. Barring injury or burnout, she could win medals at four, or even five, Olympics before she's done.

haha this didn't age so well. She didn't want to do the international thing anymore after she came to duke. decided to do other things with her life.

[richmclean]

I should have said that Altman quarterbacked Duke's last bowl win and last CWS appearance.

Our last bowl win was in 2015 vs. Indiana but carry on!

[Tripping William]

Our last bowl win was in 2015 vs. Indiana but carry on!

What was the date of the post you quoted? Did it precede 2015? Because Olympic Fan (may he RIP) passed away in 2018. I miss Oly.

[CrazyNotCrazie]

Our last bowl win was in 2015 vs. Indiana but carry on!

You just referenced a post from 2010 so it was accurate at the time but carry on!

[Pghdukie]

Remember, the infield surfaces were not pristine as they are in today's game. I will cite Yankee great Tony Koubek who undoubtedly will agree with me !
I will cast my vote for Dick Groat also. To play 2 sports professionally is one thing. To succeed in both merits attention.

[sagegrouse]

Our last bowl win was in 2015 vs. Indiana but carry on!

What was the date of the post you quoted? Did it precede 2015? Because Olympic Fan (may he RIP) passed away in 2018. I miss Oly.

The last bowl win was December 27, 2018 against Temple, 56-27.

Until Spurrier's last team went bowling (sans Steve), Duke had only accepted bids to the then four major bowls and may have been the only team to play in all four, winning one game each at the Sugar, Orange and Cotton bowls and losing at the Rose Bowl twice despite being favorites. (Wallace Wade, of course, won the Rose Bowl as the Alabama coach.)

[dukelifer]

Our last bowl win was in 2015 vs. Indiana but carry on!

I think Duke has three bowl wins in a row - 2 since 2015

[DU82]

The last bowl win was December 27, 2018 against Temple, 56-27.

Until Spurrier's last team went bowling (sans Steve), Duke had only accepted bids to the then four major bowls and may have been the only team to play in all four, winning one game each at the Sugar, Orange and Cotton bowls and losing at the Rose Bowl twice despite being favorites. (Wallace Wade, of course, won the Rose Bowl as the Alabama coach.)

Before the playoff-BCS era, I believe there were ~4 schools that had WON ‘all four major bowls, and ~8 that had been in all four. Georgia Tech, Alabama, Notre Dame, Georgia won. Ohio State, Penn State andTexas added the fourth/last win since the BCS championship game started. (Probably more, didn’t check.). Since the Rose Bowl became B1G and PCC/PAC 8/10/12 in 1947, it was the toughest to get (until the BCS ‘era opened it up.)

[johnb]

George McAfee deserves some mention. He attended 1937-1940

As a senior, he won the Southern Conference 100 meter dash and batted .353 as a centerfielder in baseball.

He played football for Duke from 1937 and 1940, including the 1938 Iron Dukes. They won 2 conference titles in his 3 years. He was 1st team All-American as a running back. His senior year, he led the team in rushing, receiving, scoring, kickoff returns, punt returns, interceptions, and punting.

Drafted 2nd overall in the 1940 NFL Draft, McAFee starred with the Chicago Bears, earning All Pro as a running back as they won NFL championships in 3 of his 4 years in the NFL.

At the end of his 2nd year, 1941, the US entered WWII. McAfee enlisted in the US Navy and missed almost 4 complete seasons. He returned for two years after the war.

Before he metamorphosed into a Field, Green Bay Coach Earl "Curly" Lambeau once called McAfee "the most talented back the Packers ever faced.”

Last I could find data, McAfee still led the NFL in lifetime punt return average.
https://www.profootballhof.com/top-2...eturn-average/

[johnb]

Before the playoff-BCS era, I believe there were ~4 schools that had WON ‘all four major bowls, and ~8 that had been in all four. Georgia Tech, Alabama, Notre Dame, Georgia won. Ohio State, Penn State andTexas added the fourth/last win since the BCS championship game started. (Probably more, didn’t check.). Since the Rose Bowl became B1G and PCC/PAC 8/10/12 in 1947, it was the toughest to get (until the BCS ‘era opened it up.)

Right—Rose would have been a tough get outside of those 2 conferences.

Btw, Oklahoma football does not like to be left out of conversations. They’ve won the Orange (12-8), Sugar (6-2), Cotton (2-1), and Rose (1-1).

[Indoor66]

George McAfee deserves some mention. He attended 1937-1940

As a senior, he won the Southern Conference 100 meter dash and batted .353 as a centerfielder in baseball.

He played football for Duke from 1937 and 1940, including the 1938 Iron Dukes. They won 2 conference titles in his 3 years. He was 1st team All-American as a running back. His senior year, he led the team in rushing, receiving, scoring, kickoff returns, punt returns, interceptions, and punting.

Drafted 2nd overall in the 1940 NFL Draft, McAFee starred with the Chicago Bears, earning All Pro as a running back as they won NFL championships in 3 of his 4 years in the NFL.

At the end of his 2nd year, 1941, the US entered WWII. McAfee enlisted in the US Navy and missed almost 4 complete seasons. He returned for two years after the war.

Before he metamorphosed into a Field, Green Bay Coach Earl "Curly" Lambeau once called McAfee "the most talented back the Packers ever faced.”

Last I could find data, McAfee still led the NFL in lifetime punt return average.
https://www.profootballhof.com/top-2...eturn-average/

Then he moved back to Durham and founded McAfee Oil Co. It delivered fuel oil to homes and businesses in Durham an surroundings.

George was a fixture at Durham Sports Club meeting and events at the old Civic Center. He was also s founding member of Iron Dukes when Tom Butters got that started. He was an all around good man.

[MartyClark]

I think Nancy Hogshead may have the strongest claim. She won three gold medals and a silver at the 1984 summer Olympics as a swimmer.

I don't want to revive an age old debate about who is an athlete and what it means to be an athlete. I was a modestly decent college wrestler for a few years and felt the sting of people discounting the athleticism and coordination of wrestlers in other sports. They were largely correct but there were many exceptions to that alleged rule.

I greatly admire swimmers but, for the most part, nobody talks about their athleticism and my experience with swimmers is that they weren't very graceful or athletic on dry land.

Nancy Hogshead, who I wasn't familiar with, was obviously a great swimmer. I'd put Dave Simes and many Duke basketball players ahead of her as the best Duke athlete.

[johnb]

Then he moved back to Durham and founded McAfee Oil Co. It delivered fuel oil to homes and businesses in Durham an surroundings.

George was a fixture at Durham Sports Club meeting and events at the old Civic Center. He was also s founding member of Iron Dukes when Tom Butters got that started. He was an all around good man.

I read up on him a few times since he’s a very distant cousin. From the sounds of it, George attended a lot of Duke games in many sports, every year for a long time. It also sounds like he didn’t deny his elite sports background but was straightforward and understated about the old days. He also, apparently, didn’t talk about his years in the Navy during the war, either by telling war stories or wondering what coulda been (as in, he left the nfl during his mid 20’s for his 4 year enlistment). Different era, of course, but I did get the impression that he’d have been a great guy to know (oddly enough, we were likely watching games around the same field while I was at Duke, but I wouldn’t have known him from Adam).

[DoubleBlue]

I greatly admire swimmers but, for the most part, nobody talks about their athleticism and my experience with swimmers is that they weren't very graceful or athletic on dry land.

Each sport has its challenges and to rise to the top you must master that combination of speed, strength, agility, etc. Perhaps a good measure of athleticism is a multi-sport athlete, but there aren't many of them any more. For example, Jim Thorpe, Bo Jackson, Deion Sanders to name a few.

Nowadays, to rise to the top it seems you must specialize. However, having said that, and having played most sports myself to some extent, I've always felt that basketball has the best overall athletes. Quickness, jumping ability, strength, hand-eye coordination, etc. Decathletes don't have time to play team sports, although they are very versatile and would probably excel at one of them.

I would put Zion Williamson as Duke's top athlete of all time. He could have played football, baseball, soccer or probably anything else he tried. He has exceptional strength, agility, jumping ability, quickness, hands, touch... as well as a team-oriented attitude. A combination that tops them all by far in my opinion.

[Phredd3]

I don't want to revive an age old debate about who is an athlete and what it means to be an athlete. I was a modestly decent college wrestler for a few years and felt the sting of people discounting the athleticism and coordination of wrestlers in other sports. They were largely correct but there were many exceptions to that alleged rule.

I greatly admire swimmers but, for the most part, nobody talks about their athleticism and my experience with swimmers is that they weren't very graceful or athletic on dry land.

Nancy Hogshead, who I wasn't familiar with, was obviously a great swimmer. I'd put Dave Simes and many Duke basketball players ahead of her as the best Duke athlete.

This post is objectionable on so many levels that I can't bring myself to respond in detail. Suffice it to say that I think Nancy Hogshead, Olympian and #1 world-ranked swimmer, would be an outstanding choice as "best Duke athlete". Other choices may also be worthy. I will leave it at that.

[sagegrouse]

I don't want to revive an age old debate about who is an athlete and what it means to be an athlete. I was a modestly decent college wrestler for a few years and felt the sting of people discounting the athleticism and coordination of wrestlers in other sports. They were largely correct but there were many exceptions to that alleged rule.

I greatly admire swimmers but, for the most part, nobody talks about their athleticism and my experience with swimmers is that they weren't very graceful or athletic on dry land.

Nancy Hogshead, who I wasn't familiar with, was obviously a great swimmer. I'd put Dave Simes and many Duke basketball players ahead of her as the best Duke athlete.

Sime, as in "Jim."

the term "best athlete" is treacherous. It is complicated by the fact that track and field at the Olympics has always been called "athletics." And, no, I don't think a discussion of best athlete should be confined to a discussion of running and jumping feats.

I would settle for a discussion of "most successful" in sports.

[jimmymax]

Wow - re the swimmers and land thing. My "is it a sport" yardstick is that if you can smoke and play then it ain't a sport. This means pool/billiards, darts, and, yes, golf are out. Swimming is definitely in!

[uh_no]

Wow - re the swimmers and land thing. My "is it a sport" yardstick is that if you can smoke and play then it ain't a sport. This means pool/billiards, darts, and, yes, golf are out. Swimming is definitely in!

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