Duke Blue Devil Legend Makes Triumphant Return

When you think about the Duke Blue Devils in any way, the first person that pops up is the legendary Men's Basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski. Krzyzewski has done it all when he was the head coach of the Basketball program. He will forever be a member of Duke History, and he was back on campus this week.

Duke Welcomes Back Legend

Feb 14, 2023; Durham, North Carolina, USA; Former Duke Blue Devils head coach Mike Krzyzewski (left) and wife Mickie watch the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Duke Blue Devils warmup at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images | Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images

"In a rare public speaking appearance, former Duke men’s basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski gave a talk at the Duke University Chapel Thursday night as part of the William Preston Few lecture series, which aims to bridge “faith and learning.”

"The lecture was moderated by Rev. Dr. Luke Powery, Dean of Duke University Chapel and Professor of Homiletics and African and African American Studies," said Ashley Currie of The Chronicle.

Since retiring, Krzyzewski has stayed busy. Outside of athletics, he is the co-founder of the Coach K Center on Leadership and Ethics, a Professor of the Practice of Leadership at the Fuqua School of Business and has been on the board of directors at the V Foundation since its inception.

Retired Duke basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski | Matt Giles-Duke Blue Devils On SI

Krzyzewski began by discussing a key pillar of his life: faith. He grew up in Chicago and was raised Catholic by his parents. He has also been married to his wife Mickie, a baptist, for 56 years. But his journey with faith was not always linear.

“Everything was a sin,” Krzyzewski said. “You couldn’t think [or] move.”

“He said ‘What's wrong with you?’” Krzyzewski said. “I said ‘Father, come on man, you can't do anything. How do you live?’ We sat down and he spent an hour with me and I started to understand. I get chills thinking about it.”

Apr 5, 2025; San Antonio, TX, USA; Former Duke Blue Devils men's basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski, Mickie Krzyzewski and Duke University president Vincent Price look on during the second half in the semifinals of the men's Final Four of the 2025 NCAA Tournament at the Alamodome. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

“All of us here in this amazing chapel, we’re all the same because of one thing. We all have control over our attitude,” Krzyzewski said. “[If] we all left here with a great attitude, you’d have more smiles on your faces… [and] it doesn’t cost a darn thing.”

“If you’re lucky enough, you live your why,” Krzyzewski said. “I wanted to be a teacher and a coach and I’ve been that my entire life. I love what I do, but that doesn’t mean you love everything that you do doing what you love. There’s a price to be paid.”

ddd — The Duke men's basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski at Funk Gym at Fort Bragg in Fayetteville, N.C. on Monday, Oct. 15, 2012. | Raul R. Rubiera / USA TODAY NETWORK

“Whenever you get knocked down, you get up, and you either figure out a new way you do it or you form a team,” Krzyzewski said. “Even when we were 38-47 my first three years, I believed we were going to win. And thank God President Sanford and Tom Butters believed that too. A lot of fans did not believe it at that time.”

Stay tuned to Duke Blue Devils On SI for more Duke athletics news.

As always, make sure you stay up to date with all Duke content by following us on Facebook, by clicking HERE and following us on X (formerly Twitter) HERE