KJ Duff

KJ Duff
Duff at 2026 Big Ten Media Day
No. 8 – Rutgers Scarlet Knights
PositionWide receiver
ClassJunior
Personal information
Born (2005-12-06) December 6, 2005 (age 20)
Listed height
6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Listed weight
225 lb (102 kg)
Career information
High schoolSt. Anthony's (South Huntington, New York)
College
Awards and highlights
Stats at ESPN

Korey "KJ" Duff Jr. (born December 6, 2005) is an American college football wide receiver for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights.

Early life

Duff attended St. Anthony's High School in South Huntington, New York. In his junior season, he hauled in 44 passes for 995 yards and 12 touchdowns. Coming out of high school, Duff was rated as a four-star recruit and committed to play college football for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights over schools such as Texas A&M, Miami, Pittsburgh, Arizona State, Duke, Georgia Tech, Maryland, Syracuse, Vanderbilt, and West Virginia.

College career

Duff made his collegiate debut in the 2024 season opener against Howard, recording one reception for nine yards in a victory. The following week against Akron, he caught two passes for 29 yards and his first collegiate touchdown, a six-yard reception from Athan Kaliakmanis, in a 49–17 victory. In Week 8 against UCLA, Duff recorded a season-high 82 receiving yards on three receptions. In the Rate Bowl against Kansas State, he caught three passes for 58 yards in a 44–41 loss. He appeared in all 13 games with four starts, finishing the season with 27 receptions for 425 yards and one touchdown.

Duff began the 2025 season with touchdown receptions in each of his first two games, victories over Ohio and Miami (OH). In Week 3 against Norfolk State, he recorded six receptions for 119 yards. In Week 8 against Purdue, Duff had six receptions for a career-high 241 yards and one touchdown in a 27–24 victory, with his receiving total ranking second in program history for a single game. Duff finished the season with 60 receptions for 1,084 yards and seven touchdowns, starting all 12 games, and was named second-team All-Big Ten.

In the 2026 season opener against UMass, Duff recorded nine receptions for 196 yards and three touchdowns in a loss. In Week 2 against Boston College, Duff recorded eight receptions for 137 yards and two touchdowns. He became the first Rutgers player to record at least 120 receiving yards in three consecutive games dating back to the 2025 season. He also recorded his 100th career reception in the loss.

Statistics

Year Team Games Receiving
GPGSRecYdsAvgTD
2024Rutgers 1342742515.71
2025Rutgers 1212601,08418.17
2026Rutgers 442955019.07
Career29201162,05917.815

References

  1. 1 2 @kj_duff (December 7, 2023). "18th birthday spent right🪓 Appreciate you guys for stopping by @CoachValloneRU" (Tweet). Retrieved September 22, 2025 – via X (formerly Twitter).
  2. ↑ Hunt, Todderick (June 30, 2023). "These 5 plays show how 4-star WR K.J. Duff can help Rutgers' offense ... in a big way". NJ.com. Retrieved September 20, 2025.
  3. ↑ Hunt, Todderick. "Greg Schiano snags Rutgers' biggest catch of the 2024 class in 4-star WR hybrid K.J. Duff". NJ.com. Retrieved September 20, 2025.
  4. ↑ Mertz, James. "'They're going to be great players': KJ Duff, Ian Strong's high school bond on full display for Rutgers football". The Daily Targum. Retrieved September 20, 2025.
  5. ↑ Catapano, John. "After a Strong Finish in 2024, Rutgers WR Duff Poised for Big Season". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved September 20, 2025.
  6. ↑ Thompson, Nathan. "'It definitely feels great': KJ Duff speaks on increased role in victory over Norfolk State". The Daily Targum. Retrieved September 20, 2025.
  7. ↑ "KJ Duff was dominant for Rutgers football in Saturday's Big Ten win". 247Sports. Retrieved September 4, 2026.
  8. ↑ "How this budding star carried Rutgers to win over Purdue with 'mind-blowing' performance in huge spot". NJ.com. October 26, 2025. Retrieved September 4, 2026.
  9. ↑ Fonseca, Brian (January 2, 2026). "Star Rutgers receiver to return in 2026 season, marking major win for Scarlet Knights". NJ.com. Retrieved January 4, 2026.
  10. ↑ "KJ Duff discusses Rutgers Football's opening night loss to UMass". On3. September 4, 2026. Retrieved September 4, 2026.
  11. ↑ "Rutgers football suffers embarrassing loss to UMass". Yahoo Sports. September 4, 2026. Retrieved September 4, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Football Loses at Boston College". Rutgers University Athletics. September 11, 2026. Retrieved September 12, 2026.