Reports say one of the most famous men in America is expected on hand for one of the greatest rivalries in sports Wednesday night.
According to Inside Carolina and Adam Zagoria, Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States, is expected to come to Cameron Indoor Stadium for the Blue Devils' game against North Carolina this week.
Duke has yet to officially announce Obama's appearance and The Chronicle has not been able to independently confirm it.
When asked if Obama would be making an appearance, Michael Schoenfeld—vice president for public affairs and government relations—declined to comment. Jon Jackson, deputy director of athletics, and Mike DeGeorge, director of sports information, did not reply to requests for comment.
Obama would be the first president to visit Cameron since the late George H.W. Bush saw a 95-60 rout of N.C. State in 2014.
Zagoria was the first to report the story early Monday morning and Inside Carolina claims to have confirmed the plan Tuesday morning.
Obama's love for college basketball is well-documented, and when he was in office, making his NCAA tournament bracket picks on ESPN was an annual tradition. He also has connections to both Tobacco Road programs—during his first presidential campaign in 2008, he scrimmaged with the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill, and he also played regularly with longtime aide Reggie Love, who was a reserve for the Blue Devils when they won the 2001 national title.
While he was president, Obama saw Duke in person once when it visited Washington to play Georgetown in 2010. The Hoyas blew the Blue Devils out in that game, leading by as many as 23 before winning 89-77, but Duke got the last laugh with its fourth national title three months later.
Since leaving office in January 2017, Obama has generally stayed out of the spotlight, spending time traveling the world and giving occasional speeches.
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