With redshirt freshman Ethan Hubbard announcing he entered the transfer portal on Wednesday, the Blue Devils have just eight offensive linemen on the roster.
Hubbard was one of nine linemen on the 2024 spring football roster after Graham Barton and Jacob Monk, two longtime starters, both left for the NFL draft. The position group is so thin that head coach Manny Diaz played more than half of the spring game as a 7-on-7 scrimmage with no linemen on the field.
Graduate student Jack Purcell, redshirt senior Calib Perez, and redshirt junior Justin Pickett are the only upperclassmen in the group. Two of the other five are redshirt sophomores, and the other three are redshirt freshmen.
In an interview during the spring game last weekend, Diaz ensured the Blue Devils weren’t done with the transfer portal ahead of the 2024 season, implying he wanted to bring in multiple players before the Aug. 30 debut against Elon. He’ll likely have to in order to protect new quarterback Maalik Murphy.
