Pro Football Focus put Rutgers wide receiver KJ Duff in rare company heading into the 2026 college football season, slotting him at No. 27 on its list of the 50 best players in the country.
Duff’s place on the list comes after a breakout season that made him impossible to ignore. He was Rutgers’ first 1,000-yard receiver since Leonte Carroo in 2014, and his size is a major part of what makes him so difficult to defend. At 6-foot-6, he gives quarterbacks a massive target and a huge edge on contested balls.
“Last season, Duff became Rutgers’ first 1,000-yard receiver since Leonte Carroo in 2014. His massive 6-foot-6 frame allows him to make seemingly impossible catches.
His contested-catch total tied for the FBS lead (22), while his 18.1 yards per reception ranked second in the Big Ten. Rutgers’ quarterback situation remains unsettled, but whoever wins the job should make Duff the focal point of the passing game,” said PFF writers Dalton Wasserman and Max Chadwick.
The numbers back up the hype. Duff finished last season with 60 catches for 1,084 yards and seven touchdowns, averaging a little more than 18 yards per reception. That kind of production down the field has already made him one of the country’s most dangerous vertical threats.
The preseason recognition has kept piling up, too. Along with the PFF ranking, Duff was also named a preseason All-American by Phil Steele, Athlon Sports, and the Walter Camp Foundation.
Now the big question is who will be throwing him the ball. Rutgers has a quarterback battle between former backup AJ Surace and former Boston College quarterback Dylan Lonergan, and Duff is expected to be the top option for whoever wins the job. The Scarlet Knights are trying to keep the momentum going in the passing game after the jump they made under former quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis, and Duff’s role should be central to that effort.
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There is still some roster business left to sort out, though, and that keeps the full picture from coming into focus just yet. Rutgers is still waiting on the status of guard Luis Duarte, while the staff also wants to add two more frontcourt players before the offseason is over. So even as the backcourt takes shape, the final version of this team still depends on how the rest of the roster fills in around it. [Read more 🡒]
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For Rutgers fans, the appeal goes beyond one hot week. Gotterup left New Brunswick as one of the most decorated players in program history, and this win only sharpens the sense that his game still has room to climb. The John Deere also carries extra meaning in his pro story, which makes this latest breakthrough feel less like a surprise and more like another checkpoint in a career that is starting to stack up big moments. [Read more 🡒]