Jerry Schmitt did the math.

It was 1993, and the Duquesne football team had budgeted for only two full-time coaches — the head coach and the defensive coordinator. At the time, Schmitt was the offensive coordinator and O-line coach. That meant Schmitt. needed to keep his day job.

“For 17 years, I taught high school math,” Schmitt said. “I loved every minute of it. I miss it to this day. I loved teaching.”

After his classes, he headed to Duquesne’s practices and meetings. “We’ve come a long way,” said Schmitt, now the head coach of the Dukes, an FCS program that will play Hawaii in Saturday’s homecoming football game at the Ching Complex.

There are challenges for a football program whose campus is in downtown Pittsburgh. Duquesne is a respected institution in a city now known more for advances in technology and medicine than steel. After receiving a $50-million donation, Duquesne’s law school will be renamed the Thomas R. Kline School of Law.

Arthur J. Rooney Field’s 2,200-seat capacity is the smallest among NCAA Division I programs. The basketball venue, UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse, can accommodate 3,500 fans.

Because of scheduling conflicts and space limitations, the Dukes have had to scramble for practice areas. “We manage,” Schmitt said. “We share sports fields with other sports teams.… Sometimes we have crazy practice times. Sometimes classes run into our practice times. … It’s a challenge at times, but we teach our guys that we adjust in those aspects — and that transfers to the field. You have to adjust on the field.”

The Northeast Conference holds each football member to the financial equivalent of 45 scholarships. But Schmitt is able to use loans, grants and academic aid to allow five players to benefit from one scholarship. In contrast, UH, like the other FBS schools, is allowed to offer 85 full scholarships.

Despite restrictions, Schmitt has built a program that regularly competes for NEC titles. This is Schmitt’s 18th season as Duquesne’s head coach, exceeding Mike Tomlin’s 16-season tenure with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

He said he uses techniques culled from teaching in high school to introduce plays and schemes to the Dukes.

“I transferred what I learned from guys I taught with and guys I coached with for many years on how to teach, how to make it simple so you can understand it quickly and you can play fast on the field and not worry about assignments,” Schmitt said.

Joe Mischler, who began his career at Ohio, has completed 61.5% of his passes the past two games. Slotback Dwayne Menders and wideout Abdul Janneh are averaging 15.5 and 15.1 yards per catch, respectively. The Dukes have not fumbled in 159 touches.

Schmitt has never considered relocating.

“I’m from Pittsburgh,” Schmitt said. “I grew up in Pittsburgh. I love Pittsburgh. My family’s all in Pittsburgh. I’m happy where I’m at. I love the school, love the program, love the area. I’ll keep doing what I’m doing. … It’s awesome to coach in the city of Pittsburgh. We say arguably the best football town in the country. That’s what we say. We understand where we’re at. We’re proud of where we’re at. There’s the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Pitt Panthers and Duquesne Dukes. All great football in the city of Pittsburgh.”