KJ Duff had every reason to test the transfer market this offseason. After a breakout sophomore year, the Rutgers wideout had turned himself into one of the Big Ten’s most productive receivers, and other programs were already circling before he ever made a move.
Instead, Duff is back in Piscataway, and his reasoning came down to one thing: he believes Rutgers gives him the best path to the NFL.
A big part of that decision was staying under wide receivers coach Dave Brock for another season. Duff said that relationship, along with head coach Greg Schiano’s involvement, pushed him to return.
Duff finished last season with 60 catches for 1,084 yards and seven receiving touchdowns, leading Rutgers in every major receiving category. That kind of production naturally drew attention, and he admitted this week on Yogi Roth’s podcast that he was seriously considering leaving.
"I think the relationship alone was a big thing for me. I've never really said this before to anybody but I was ready to leave.
Like, I wanted to leave at some point. I called both of them, coach Brock and coach Schiano.
I told them that I wanted to leave, and the conversations went on," Duff told Yogi Roth on his podcast this week.
What followed, he said, was a conversation that forced him to slow down and think about what actually mattered most. Schiano asked him to sort through that, and the coach also made a point to meet with Duff’s family.
"Then coach Schiano, he was just like, 'I want you to figure out like what's really important to you in this process.' In that whole process, he met with my family, went out, had breakfast with my mom and dad, and coach Brock was there too.
"Ultimately, it was just what was really important to me, leaving that legacy and playing for both of those two men. You know, I'm happy with the decision."
Duff said the whole process was "very stressful." As a former four-star recruit from Long Island, he had already dealt with plenty of recruiting attention coming out of high school. But the lead-up to a possible portal move brought a different kind of pressure.
His thoughts kept bouncing around, he said, until he finally sat down and wrote everything out.
"I think just laying all the facts out in front of me. I'm a person who likes to write stuff down.
So, I had a little notebook. I still have it in one of my drawers, but just writing down basically like the pros and cons, if you want to call it that.
But just ultimately the pros, if you want to say for Rutgers, mattered more to me," Duff said.
"Because I could go somewhere else and go play in front of 105,000 people, whatever you want to call it, a cool atmosphere. But that atmosphere alone is not going to get me to the NFL. You know, the coaches, the people all around - that really matters."
For Duff, the coaching piece was central. He believes another year with Brock, who has worked with Julio Jones and Mohamed Sanu, can do more for his NFL future than a flashy setting ever could.
That trust goes back to Duff’s recruitment out of high school, when Rutgers was one of the few schools that saw him as a wide receiver. Plenty of programs viewed him as a flex player or even only as a tight end. Rutgers saw more.
Schiano, Brock and offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca all believed Duff could play receiver, and Brock played a major role in getting him to campus in the first place. Now Brock had to win him over all over again.
In Duff’s notebook, one name kept rising to the top.
"Shoot. Coach Brock off rip.
Like we said earlier, he was the one that believed in me, and it turned out into this. Who wouldn't want to play for a coach like that?"
Duff said.
He also thinks his choice can serve as a guide for other players who will face the same kind of decision down the line.
"Like what matters to you? If you want to go play somewhere else, play somewhere…cool stadiums.
I mean, shoot - I play in cool stadiums now in the Big Ten. But if the ultimate goal is to get to the NFL, you got to approach it from that standpoint," Duff said.
In Other News...
10 Scarlet Knights Just Put Rutgers Roster Progress On Notice
Ten Rutgers football players landed on the Shriners Childrens East-West Bowl 1000 Watch List, a sign that the programs roster development is drawing real attention beyond Piscataway. The group includes offensive lineman Kwabena Asamoah, defensive linemen JDan Burnett, Malachi Davis and Rondo Porter, wide receiver KJ Duff, quarterback Dylan Lonergan, linebacker Ty Morris, offensive lineman Tyler Needham, running back Antwan Raymond and defensive back Kaj Sanders, with several transfers bringing strong rsums from their previous stops.
For Rutgers, the list is more than a preseason talking point. It reflects a roster that has added proven production in key spots and gives the Scarlet Knights a clearer sense of how much NFL-caliber talent is starting to accumulate. Needhams experience, Morris all-around production and the transfer track records of Burnett, Davis and Sanders all add weight to the idea that this group is deeper and more competitive than it was a year ago, even if the biggest test of that progress still lies ahead. [Read more 🡒]
Rutgers Womens Lacrosse Lands Cascade Maverik Deal As Program Momentum Grows
Rutgers womens lacrosse keeps adding to a busy stretch off the field, with the program now lined up with Cascade Maverik Lacrosse for gear and equipment. For a team that has been building its profile on the field, the partnership gives the Scarlet Knights another sign of support as they continue competing at the collegiate level with a growing standard around the program.
The deal also fits the bigger picture around Rutgers recent momentum, which has included an 11-win season, four Big Ten victories and an NCAA Tournament berth after a win over No. 17 Princeton. With that kind of progress, a partnership built around innovative lacrosse products feels like another step in treating the program more like a rising contender than a team still trying to prove it belongs. [Read more 🡒]