Rutgers Star KJ Duff Takes Center Stage at Big Ten Media Days

Rutgers wide receiver KJ Duff Jr entered the national spotlight Tuesday during the 2026 Big Ten Football Media Day in Chicago.

Duff represented the Scarlet Knights alongside running back Antwan Raymond and offensive lineman Kwabena Asamoah. The Rutgers trio appeared together on the Big Ten Network studio set as part of the program’s scheduled media appearances.

💡 🎥 🎬 pic.twitter.com/xg4yPuvXwD
— Rutgers Football 🪓 (@RFootball) July 28, 2026

Duff talks Rutgers Football at the Rutgers media day event. He explains why he’s staying at Rutgers, his growth within the Rutgers program, and the Scarlet Knights’ expectations going into the 2026 season.

His appearance on Big Ten Network came on the same day that Duff and Raymond were announced as two of the 12 Big Ten players selected to the conference’s Preseason Honors list. The 12 players on the list were selected by media covering Big Ten Conference games and practices.

KJ Duff and Antwan Raymond were both selected to the Big Ten Preseason Honors list. The group of 12 players were voted on by media members across the league.

The Scarlet Knights are one of four programs with multiple honorees. 🪓 pic.twitter.com/arZWYLOr99
— Rutgers Football 🪓 (@RFootball) July 28, 2026

Duff and Raymond Receive Preseason Recognition

Along with Indiana, Ohio State, and Oregon, Rutgers was one of the few Big Ten teams with multiple players selected.

Duff and Raymond became the first Scarlet Knights to receive the preseason recognition since running back Kyle Monangai in 2024.

The selections continued to express anticipation of a return to form for the Rutgers offense with two of the Conference’s most prolific skill players returning.

Duff had a breakout 2025 season and, in the process, became one of the top wideouts in the country. Duff recorded 1,084 yards receiving on the season. He is the 7th Scarlet Knight to record over 1,000 yards in a season. He was also only the second Rutgers player to reach the milestone during the program’s Big Ten era and the first since 2014.

Duff Discusses His Decision to Return

KJ Duff Jr, Rutgers Wide Receiver, talked with the media on Tuesday during Big Ten Media Day in Chicago. He talked about returning to Rutgers instead of taking another route for his career.

KJ Duff Jr returns for the Scarlet Knights and is a very experienced No. 1 receiver who can create big plays and win key balls in the air. Duff mentioned before that he wanted to stay at Rutgers because of the opportunities for relationships within the program and to leave a legacy when he finally leaves.

He looks to build off of last year’s average of 90.3 receiving yards per game throughout the season. Globally, that figure ranks 7th in the nation, climbing to 4th in the Power Four and 3rd in the Big Ten.

Duff finished the season with 60 receptions for 7 touchdowns with 18.1 yards per reception. Fifty of his receptions either produced a first down or resulted in a touchdown.

According to Pro Football Focus, Duff led the country with 22 contested catches.

Historic Purdue Performance Highlights Breakout Year

Duff spoke during Media Day about his record-breaking performance against Purdue.

Duff recorded 241 receiving yards on just six catches during Rutgers’ victory. That became the 2nd-highest single-game receiving total in program history. It ended up being the highest total by a Big Ten player for the 2025 season. Nationally it ended up being the 4th highest single game receiving total for the year.

Starting wideout KJ Duff jr, from Riverhead, NY, had three 100+ yard games and 5+ receptions in 8 games.

Duff earned Second Team All-Big Ten honors and was an honorable mention All-American according to Phil Steele’s list. He was also named Academic All-Big Ten.

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