Rutgers has landed in a very small club, and the names carrying it there are Antwan Raymond and KJ Duff.
The Scarlet Knights are now just the third Big Ten program since 2014 to place both a running back and a wide receiver on Athlon Sports’ preseason All-Big Ten first team in the same year, according to the Rutgers Sports Data X account. The only other schools to do it are Ohio State and Penn State.
Ohio State pulled it off in 2020, 2022, 2024 and again in 2026. Penn State did it in 2016 and 2017. Rutgers now joins that list in 2026, a clear sign of how far the Scarlet Knights’ skill talent has come.
Raymond earned his spot after a breakout 2025 season that put him among the Big Ten’s top backs. He ran for 1,241 yards and 13 touchdowns and was named a Doak Walker Award semifinalist.
Duff put together a huge year of his own. He led Rutgers with 60 catches for 1,084 yards and seven touchdowns, while averaging 90.3 receiving yards per game, good for third in the Big Ten and seventh nationally. The Academic All-Big Ten selection also made the Walter Camp Preseason All-America Second Team.
For Greg Schiano’s program, the recognition says plenty about where Rutgers stands heading into 2026. The roster has been getting deeper and more talented, and having two offensive playmakers honored at this level shows that growth in a very real way.
Both players are heading into their third college seasons and will be draft-eligible after the 2026 campaign. Rutgers recruited Raymond and Duff out of high school and kept both in place after their monster 2025 seasons.
Their first chance to back up the preseason hype comes Sept. 3, when Rutgers opens against UMass.
In Other News...
Rutgers Just Pulled Off A Massive Recruiting Win At Running Back
Rutgers landed a major boost on the recruiting trail with Aiden Gibson, a four-star running back from Woodruff, S.C., giving Greg Schianos program a name that immediately changes the conversation around the backfield. Gibson had been one of the more coveted backs in the country, and his decision gives the Scarlet Knights a high-end talent at a position that can reshape an offense if the development hits.
Even more notable for Rutgers is the timeline. Gibson has reclassified from the 2027 class to 2026, which means he is moving up his arrival and planning to enroll early so he can join the team for preseason as a true freshman. For a program looking to stack wins on the field with wins in recruiting, this is the kind of addition that can matter well beyond one signing day. [Read more 🡒]
Rutgers Just Set Another Standard Fans Can Be Proud Of
Rutgers Athletics had plenty to celebrate off the field and court this week, with 139 Scarlet Knights student-athletes landing on the 2025-26 Big Ten Distinguished Scholars list. The recognition underscores how broadly the department continues to perform in the classroom, and it keeps Rutgers in a familiar lane of academic consistency across the conference.
The honor carries a high bar, requiring at least a 3.70 GPA along with prior Academic All-Big Ten recognition, and 30 Scarlet Knights even posted perfect 4.0 GPAs over the previous academic year. It also extends a run of six straight years with more than 125 honorees, another marker that Rutgers can point to as it continues building its identity beyond competition. [Read more 🡒]