Duke football hit with first transfer portal exit of offseason with promising RB

Coming off its first ACC Championship victory since 1989, the Duke football program has been hit with its first transfer portal exit of the offseason, as running back Peyton Jones has entered the portal following his junior season with the Blue Devils. As a sophomore, Jones put together a promising year after injuries to the team lifted him to the depth chart. But as a junior, he saw those effects hit him the other way, as he hardly saw the field at all after the Blue Devils' first few games of the season. Jones was ruled out for several games through the back half of the regular season due to "undisclosed" reasons, as his role in the backfield essentially fizzled out with the emergence of freshman star running back Nate Sheppard.

Sheppard, a former 3-star recruit, came out of nowhere to take over the RB1 spot for Duke fairly quickly, even over veteran Jaquez Moore. Sheppard finished his freshman season logging 68 more carries than the next back on the depth chart, Anderson Castle. The rookie finished his campaign ranking second in the ACC in rushing yards (962), fourth in rushing touchdowns (10), fifth in average rushing yards per game (74.0), and seventh in average yards per attempt (5.4).

Duke football running back Peyton Jones to enter NCAA Transfer Portal

It's a disappointing end to Jones' tenure in Durham after a promising freshman year. The Norfolk, VA native finished his junior campaign with just 10 carries for 34 yards and one touchdown to go along with three receptions for another 23 yards. These numbers are vastly down from his mini-breakout sophomore year, when Jones finished with 82 carries for 317 yards and three rushing scores to go along with eight receptions for 94 yards and another TD.

Ultimately, there was just no room for Jones with the emergence of Sheppard and Castle. Jaquez Moore was supposed to be the lead senior back for the Blue Devils, and even he fizzled out of the mix almost entirely throughout the season.

Jones didn't tally a single carry after Duke's Week 3 loss to Tulane on September 13th.