Tag: Duke football

Duke football lands another transfer portal commitment from Sam Houston State safety

Duke added to its strongest position group on Saturday morning with a transfer commitment from Sam Houston State safety Caleb Weaver.

The Duke Blue Devils remain on the lookout for 2025 talent in the transfer portal, and head coach [autotag]Manny Diaz[/autotag] added to his strongest position group on Saturday morning.

Caleb Weaver, a defensive back from Sam Houston State, announced his commitment to the program through social media.

Weaver, a Class of 2021 product, played 34 games for the Bearkats over the past three seasons. He finished the 2024 campaign with a team-leading 97 total tackles, four interceptions, and six more pass deflections.

Duke allowed 6.0 yards per pass attempt this season, tied for 12th among FBS defenses, with 15 passing touchdowns allowed and 12 interceptions. A veteran secondary comprised of four upperclassmen, led by All-ACC cornerback [autotag]Chandler Rivers[/autotag], helped constrict opponents downfield, but Diaz will need to rebuild for next season. Rivers will have another year of eligibility, but the NFL could come calling after his all-conference campaign, and safety Jaylen Stinson and cornerback Joshua Pickett both just wrapped up their last Duke season.

Diaz and his staff already pulled Tulane quarterback Darian Mensah from the portal last week, and Dartmouth defensive lineman Josiah Green and Oklahoma Sooners wideout Andrel Anthony Jr. have both committed since Wednesday.

Former Duke quarterback Riley Leonard advances to College Football Playoff quarterfinals

Former Duke football star Riley Leonard secured Notre Dame’s College Football Playoff quarterfinals spot with a Friday win over Indiana.

The Duke Blue Devils may not be included among the 12-team College Football Playoff field, but a recent star from the program kept his national title hopes alive on Friday night.

[autotag]Riley Leonard[/autotag], who transferred from Duke to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish this offseason, helped his new team defeat the Indiana Hoosiers, 27-17, in front of a home crowd. The former Blue Devil completed 21 of his 32 passes for 201 yards, throwing an early interception but equalizing it with a touchdown pass in the second quarter. He added 30 yards and another touchdown on the ground.

The Fighting Irish lost to Northern Illinois in stunning fashion back in Week 2, but Notre Dame has now won 11 straight games to reach the final eight. Despite the national success, however, Leonard’s numbers don’t look particularly different from his breakout 2022 campaign in Durham. He racked up 3,666 yards of offense and 33 touchdowns that season, a slight uptick from his 3,044 yards and 32 scores with the Irish.

Notre Dame will face the Georgia Bulldogs, winners of two of the last three national championships, in the Allstate Sugar Bowl on January 1 for a place in the semifinals.

Former Oklahoma wide receiver commits to Duke from transfer portal

Former Oklahoma Sooners wide receiver Andrel Anthony Jr. announced his commitment to the Duke Blue Devils on Thursday.

The Duke Blue Devils made their third splash in the transfer portal on Thursday night when former Oklahoma Sooners wide receiver Andrel Anthony Jr. announced his commitment to the program.

On3’s Hayes Fawcett first reported the decision.

Anthony, a former three-star prospect from the Class of 2021, started his collegiate career with the Michigan Wolverines. The 6-foot-1 wideout picked up 248 yards and three scores on 12 receptions as a freshman, but he transferred to Norman after a quiet 2022 season.

Anthony again impressed in his first season with a new school, catching 27 passes for 429 yards in just six games, but his season came to an unfortunate end when he suffered a knee injury against the Texas Longhorns. He ended this past season with a single reception as he struggled to get back on the field.

The new Duke wideout will help fill a big opening in Durham. Senior stars Jordan Moore and Eli Pancol both finished with more than 700 yards in 2024, combining for 16 touchdowns, but they both played their final regular-season game for the Blue Devils last month.

Head coach Manny Diaz already secured commitments from Tulane quarterback Darian Mensah and All-Ivy defensive lineman Josiah Green from Dartmouth earlier this month.

Former Duke quarterback Maalik Murphy announces his transfer portal destination

Former Duke quarterback Maalik Murphy, who hit the transfer portal after the regular season, announced his next school on Thursday.

Former Duke quarterback [autotag]Maalik Murphy[/autotag] announced his commitment to the Oregon State Beavers on Thursday, as first reported by ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

Murphy, who started his collegiate career with the Texas Longhorns, transferred to the Blue Devils ahead of the 2024 season. He started all 12 regular-season games for the program, helping lead four fourth-quarter comebacks in a 9-3 campaign.

He set a school record with 26 passing touchdowns, including a 39-yarder to senior star Jordan Moore on the final play against Wake Forest in the finale. The score put the finishing touches on a 14-point comeback, helping the Blue Devils sweep their in-state rivals for the first time since 2013.

Murphy ended the year with 2,933 passing yards, the seventh-most of any ACC quarterback, and he averaged 286.4 yards per game with 14 total touchdowns over his final five starts.

The Blue Devils already landed Tulane’s Darian Mensah from the portal, but he won’t be eligible for next month’s TaxSlayer Gator Bowl against Ole Miss. With sophomore Grayson Loftis also in the portal, Henry Belin IV should get the majority of the work at quarterback for the Blue Devils.

Duke football lands former Dartmouth defensive lineman from the transfer portal

With the college football transfer portal in full swing, the Duke Blue Devils landed another player from the Ivy League.

The college football transfer portal has been open for multiple weeks now, and Duke coach [autotag]Manny Diaz[/autotag] and his staff remain in pursuit of some 2025 talent. On Wednesday, the Blue Devils continued their recent Ivy League pipeline with a commitment from a defensive lineman.

Josiah Green, a former Dartmouth starter, announced his commitment to the Duke program on Wednesday afternoon.

“Thank you for everything (Dartmouth),” Green wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. “Time for the Next Chapter!”

A grad transfer with 30 games of experience, Green will play out his final season of eligibility next fall. The 6-foot-1, 280-pound lineman was one of five unanimous members of the First Team All-Ivy squad after he accumulated 49 tackles, 9.0 TFLs, and three sacks.

Green won’t be the first Ivy Leaguer to join Duke through the transfer portal. Just this past season, former Princeton linebacker Ozzie Nicholas led the Blue Devils with 89 total tackles. The program also brought in Harvard grads Scott Elliott and Anthony Nelson ahead of the 2023 season, and both of them started six games that year.

Duke cornerback Chandler Rivers named Third-Team All-American by Associated Press

Duke cornerback Chandler Rivers was one of six players at his position named to the AP All-America team on Monday.

[autotag]Chandler Rivers[/autotag], the anchor of the 2024 Duke defense, earned some national recognition for his junior campaign on Monday.

The Associated Press released the AP All-America team to start the week, and Rivers joined Michigan Wolverines star Will Johnson on the Third-Team defensive squad.

Rivers intercepted three passes this season, including one he returned for a touchdown against the Florida State Seminoles, and he nabbed one from Heisman Trophy finalist Cam Ward two weeks later. He racked up 52 total tackles, including 7.5 for a loss, and he broke up nine other passes to finish tied for third among ACC defensive backs in passes defended.

The third-year corner was the only Blue Devil to make the All-ACC First Team from the conference, and the Associated Press placed him and offensive tackle Brian Parker II on its All-ACC First Team squad.

Duke linebacker announces his decision to enter the transfer portal

A three-star member of the 2024 Duke football recruiting class announced his decision to enter the transfer portal on Sunday.

Duke linebacker Montreze Smith, a three-star freshman from the 2024 recruiting class, announced his decision to enter the transfer portal on Sunday.

“I want to thank Duke University, my coaches, teammates, and the entire athletic staff for the incredible opportunity to be part of this program,” Smith wrote in a social media statement. “Representing Duke both on and off the field has been an honor, and I am truly grateful for the support and relationships I’ve built during my time here.”

Smith, a Georgia native, was 247Sports’ No. 79 linebacker in the Class of 2024 and the sixth-highest Duke football signee in [autotag]Manny Diaz[/autotag]’s first freshman class. He appeared in four games this season, recording one tackle against Elon in the opener, and he’ll have four years of eligibility left.

The Blue Devils had 12 other linebackers on the 2024 roster, but each of the team’s three leading tacklers (Ozzie Nicholas, Alex Howard, and Cam Bergeron) at the position just spent their final year with the program. Redshirt juniors Tre Freeman and Nick Morris Jr. should be back for next year, but the position could be one of interest for Duke in the portal this offseason.

None of the USA TODAY Sports experts pick Duke to beat Ole Miss in TaxSlayer Gator Bowl

Duke football should know how to be an underdog on the football field, but USA TODAY Sports experts aren’t high on its chances vs. Ole Miss.

The Duke Blue Devils have never exactly fit the mold as favorites on the football field, but the expert panel at USA TODAY Sports seems especially pessimistic about their chances against Ole Miss.

All six writers picked the Rebels to dispatch Duke on Friday, one of just 12 sweeps among the 39 listed matchups.

The Blue Devils ended the regular season with nine wins, the same number as Ole Miss, but their SEC counterparts spent the entire year in College Football Playoff contention. If not for an overtime loss to the LSU Tigers or a Week 13 upset at the hands of the Florida Gators, both away from home, Lane Kiffin could very well have his team in the postseason bracket.

On top of that, Duke starting quarterback [autotag]Maalik Murphy[/autotag] announced his decision to enter the transfer portal on Monday with backup Grayson Loftis making the same choice one day later. Murphy threw for a program-record 26 passing touchdowns this season, and while Tulane’s Darian Mensah has already committed in his place, he won’t be eligible for the game.

Duke’s bowl battle kicks off at 7:30 p.m. Eastern time on January 2.

Duke’s bowl matchup with Ole Miss rated as one of the least exciting by USA TODAY Sports

Duke football has pulled off some miracles this season, but the latest USA TODAY Sports bowl rankings doesn’t see many upcoming fireworks.

The Duke Blue Devils could put the finishing touches on their second 10-win season in school history at the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl next month, but USA TODAY Sports writer Eddie Timanus doesn’t see much to get excited about in the postseason battle.

Timanus ranked all 35 bowl games on the college football schedule on Friday, and he thinks Duke’s game against Ole Miss is the third-worst pairing on the slate.

He cited the absence of starting quarterback [autotag]Maalik Murphy[/autotag], who declared for the transfer portal on Monday, as a contributing factor. While the Blue Devils did grab a commitment from former Tulane star Darian Mensah on Wednesday, he won’t be eligible to play in Jacksonville.

Ole Miss also finished with a 9-3 record, but the Rebels finished within the top seven in scoring offense and defense as they remained in the College Football Playoff hunt until Week 13.

If the Duke faithful want some bragging rights, however, Timanus put the North Carolina Tar Heels game against the Connecticut Huskies at the lowest spot on his list.

Duke’s game against Ole Miss kicks off at 7:30 p.m. Eastern time on January 2.

Duke football coach Manny Diaz earns ‘A’ grade from USA TODAY Sports for his debut season

USA TODAY Sports released its first-year coaching grades for college football on Thursday, and Manny Diaz (predictably) earned top marks.

Duke football coach [autotag]Manny Diaz[/autotag] didn’t just put together one of the best debut seasons in program history in 2024. He put together one of the best seasons in program history period, and USA TODAY Sports writer Paul Myerberg recognized him for that on Thursday.

Myerberg released his first-year coaching grades this week, and Diaz understandably earned an ‘A’ after the Blue Devils ended with nine regular-season wins.

Diaz and his players only lost three times, but they overcame four fourth-quarter deficits to finish near the top of the ACC standings. Duke scored three late touchdowns to storm back from 20-0 against the North Carolina Tar Heels, took SMU to overtime before the Mustangs eventually finished undefeated in conference play, and erased a 17-3 Wake Forest lead in the finale.

Duke won 17 games under former head coach Mike Elko over the past two seasons, so there was groundwork for the former Miami head coach’s success. But Diaz’s first season was still just the eighth time the Blue Devils have won nine times in a season in school history and the fourth such season since 1941.

Only four other coaches earned an ‘A’ or higher, with Indiana’s Curt Cignetti granted an ‘A++’ after he led the Hoosiers to the College Football Playoff.