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Photo by: Duke Athletics
Portal Power
8/28/2025 8:05:00 AM | Football
DURHAM, N.C. -- Some of Duke's ACC football rivals have more than 40 incoming transfers.
Duke has nine who figure to be rotation players. They didn't have room for more.
Head coach Manny Diaz told the media at the ACC Kickoff that the school's culture tends to keep players around.
"You get a lot of people that were really raised the same way," he explained. "Guess what happens when you put them in a locker room? They really enjoy playing with and for one another. So, when that portal opens, they don't want to leave their best friends. I'd like to take credit for it. It ain't me. They want to play for the guys down there and that's because they're about the same stuff."
That means Duke can be surgical in its approach to the portal, selectively filling specific needs.
"You have to look at not just the impact of what the player does on the field but what they do in the locker room, and you've got to make sure you bring the right people into your program," Diaz added.
Therefore, what Duke's 2025 transfer class lacks in quantity, it makes up for in quality — nine players who project to see the field this season.
Caleb Weaver might be the best of three on the defensive side of the ball.
The safety from Houston played three seasons at Jersey Village High School in that city before finishing his prep career at Charlotte's Myers Park High School. Weaver then walked on to Sam Houston State, in Huntsville, Texas. The Bearkats had just moved up to FBS after winning the 2020 FCS national title. Weaver redshirted as a freshman, gradually earned playing time and a scholarship as Sam Houston State moved from the Western Athletic Conference into Conference USA.
Weaver arguably was CUSA's best defensive back last season, leading the league (tied) with four interceptions, while placing fifth in tackles (97) and fifth in passes defended (10).
"Change is just life," Weaver says of his journey. "I'm used to the changes. Just got to adapt, make new friends, embrace new circumstances."
After his head coach K.C. Keel left to go to Temple, Weaver hit the portal.
"When I got into the portal, a bunch of schools reached out. Duke was one of my top schools. When I took a visit, it just felt like they needed to fill a position at safety (having graduated Jaylen Stinson). The defense is good across the board. I just felt like it was the right school for me."
How does Weaver describe his game?
"Playing safety, tackling is very important. But I also can cover as well. I try to perfect my craft and just dial in on that."
Defensive coordinator Jonathan Patke sees big things for Weaver.
"We needed a safety. We felt like we needed some age in that room, with Jaylen gone. So, we searched in the portal to find that experience. We don't want to just acquire talent. We want guys who fit our system. He has all the accolades and then you hear his story. He's from the same area of Houston that I'm from. What it shows is that he's very hard-working, very resilient.Â
"He's very versatile. He can tackle, he can cover, he's got a nose for the ball. He's not very big but he has elite attributes that we were looking for. Once you get him on campus and you figure out his family and who he trains with, everybody loved him. He checked a lot of boxes for us and we're glad we got him."
Patke's defense has two other impact transfers.
Jaiden Francois comes from Utah State, after starting at UCF. He projects to take graduated Cam Bergeron's hybrid safety/linebacker position. Like Weaver, Francois can tackle and cover and has a 75-yard pick six against Idaho State to his credit.
He's a South Florida native and Patke says he and Diaz recruited him hard when they were at Miami.
"We came to know him as a person and a man," Patke noted. "We knew his journey. He played that star position (at Utah State). We thought it was a perfect fit. We brought him in on a visit and it just felt very comfortable. He has a wealth of knowledge playing the position."
Josiah Green dominated the Ivy League last season at Dartmouth and was a unanimous All-Ivy selection. At 6-1, 285, he's small for a power conference defensive tackle. But graduated Duke star Kendy Charles was about the same size and he was second-team All-ACC last season.Â
"In the system we play, we don't mind the 6-foot D-tackle, as long as he's athletic and can move and get vertical," Patke says. "We felt like we needed to add age to our D-tackle room and experience, so we find Josiah from Dartmouth, a guy that terrorized that league and you start doing the background on him and his coaches say nothing but great things about him. He's just a special young man.
"Pound for pound he's one of the strongest guys on our roster. He can squat a house, he can bench press a house. He's as powerful as anybody I've seen in the weight room numbers-wise. When it clicks he's going to be a special, special player for us."
Duke has six offensive transfers who figure to make an impact, led by quarterback Darian Mensah (featured elsewhere in this publication). Four of the other five are skill-position players.
The exception is Jordan Larsen, a 310-pound guard who played 24 games at South Dakota and helped the Coyotes to last season's 2024 FCS semifinals.
Larsen has the early inside shot at replacing Caleb Krings, the only offensive lineman to graduate from the starting lineup.Â
"Larsen is a great guy, a great (weight) room guy, works hard," veteran Duke lineman Justin Pickett says. "He had an incredible summer, working hard, putting in extra work in the weight room, on the field. He's learning a lot and I think he'll jump right in and help this team."
Tight end Landen King is a late addition. After beginning his career at Auburn, King caught 17 passes in two seasons at Utah.
Third-team All-ACC wide receivers Jordan Moore and Eli Pancol used up their eligibility last season after combining for 115 receptions. Duke brought in a pair of grad transfers to help replace them.
Andrel Anthony has 47 career receptions playing at Michigan and Oklahoma.Â
Cooper Barkate was a D-2 All-American at Harvard last season, after grabbing 83 passes for 1,084 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Barkate says he loved his time at Harvard but wanted an opportunity to play a higher level of football while maintaining academic rigor. He took extra classes, graduated from Harvard a year early and recognized that Duke "had a lot of open room in the receiver room."
Barkate did not play spring ball but has spent the summer bonding with his new teammates and learning the playbook, the latter perhaps not a big ask for someone who graduated from Harvard a year early.
Barkate, with good size at 6-1, 195, says he runs a 4.4 40 and has gotten stronger than ever under director of football sports performance David Feeley.
"I told my parents the other day I feel very put together, like a machine."
The California native gives a self-scout.
"My number one strength is my speed. I have that in my back pocket. My other biggest strength is my route running. I've done it for awhile and I was fortunate to grow up with a lot of great receiver coaches, so I learned the art of route running pretty young."
He adds that he can win 50-50 balls.
Anderson Castle is a running back. He grew up in Boone, North Carolina and spent five years at Appalachian State.
What compelled him to come down the mountain?
"We didn't have the best year last year at App. Made some coaching changes. I figured I might as well see what was out there. The opportunity to come to Duke arose and it seemed like it was too good to turn down for me."
Castle is 6-0, 220 and pretty tough to stop between the tackles. He had eight rushing TDs at App State. He embraces that role.
"My running style is downhill. I don't do a lot of dancing. I'm confident in my decision making. When I make one cut behind the line, it's go. I'm a guy that's going to fall forward. Getting those extra two or three yards is something I take pride in."
But he adds that he's not just a between-the-tackles runner.
"I've been working a lot in the open field, getting quicker feet. I've got speed to break away."
There's proof. Castle had a 49-yard TD run against Troy in 2020.
Castle is the only transfer running back but he's not the only experienced addition to the running back room.
Chris Foster joined Duke in the spring after running backs coach Willie Simmons took the head job at Florida International.
Foster joined Duke from Northwestern, after early coaching stints at his alma mater Gardner-Webb, then Appalachian State, Maryville, Georgia Southern, East Carolina and Northwestern.
In other words, he knows something about being the new kid in school.
"You can see where Coach Diaz is taking this program, where it's heading to," he says. "It's definitely trending upwards. Also the opportunity to coach and learn under coach (Jonathan) Brewer has been really good for me. I grew up in Spartanburg, South Carolina. The opportunity to get closer to home and work at a great institution, to me that's a no-brainer."
Foster says he admires Castle's willingness "to get out of his comfort zone" and come to Duke. "I think he's a great all-around back," Foster adds. "I don't think he's limited to short-yardage and goal line. He can be an every-down back."
Grad student transfers are in a curious position. On one hand they are among the team's oldest and most experienced players. On the other hand they're newcomers to a school, with a big learning curve.
Barkate threads the needle.
"It's definitely a little strange. You're an older dude but also a rookie at the same time. I'm not that vocal a guy and definitely had the humility to know when to be a leader and when to sit back, watch and learn. As an older guy you want to lead by example but you also need to know when to do it their way."
The transfers have hung around all summer, bonding as transfers, while bonding with their position groups and the team as a whole.
Not a big group in terms of numbers. But a big group in terms of potential impact for a Duke program trending upwards.
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Duke has nine who figure to be rotation players. They didn't have room for more.
Head coach Manny Diaz told the media at the ACC Kickoff that the school's culture tends to keep players around.
"You get a lot of people that were really raised the same way," he explained. "Guess what happens when you put them in a locker room? They really enjoy playing with and for one another. So, when that portal opens, they don't want to leave their best friends. I'd like to take credit for it. It ain't me. They want to play for the guys down there and that's because they're about the same stuff."
That means Duke can be surgical in its approach to the portal, selectively filling specific needs.
"You have to look at not just the impact of what the player does on the field but what they do in the locker room, and you've got to make sure you bring the right people into your program," Diaz added.
Therefore, what Duke's 2025 transfer class lacks in quantity, it makes up for in quality — nine players who project to see the field this season.
Caleb Weaver might be the best of three on the defensive side of the ball.
The safety from Houston played three seasons at Jersey Village High School in that city before finishing his prep career at Charlotte's Myers Park High School. Weaver then walked on to Sam Houston State, in Huntsville, Texas. The Bearkats had just moved up to FBS after winning the 2020 FCS national title. Weaver redshirted as a freshman, gradually earned playing time and a scholarship as Sam Houston State moved from the Western Athletic Conference into Conference USA.
Weaver arguably was CUSA's best defensive back last season, leading the league (tied) with four interceptions, while placing fifth in tackles (97) and fifth in passes defended (10).
"Change is just life," Weaver says of his journey. "I'm used to the changes. Just got to adapt, make new friends, embrace new circumstances."
After his head coach K.C. Keel left to go to Temple, Weaver hit the portal.
"When I got into the portal, a bunch of schools reached out. Duke was one of my top schools. When I took a visit, it just felt like they needed to fill a position at safety (having graduated Jaylen Stinson). The defense is good across the board. I just felt like it was the right school for me."
How does Weaver describe his game?
"Playing safety, tackling is very important. But I also can cover as well. I try to perfect my craft and just dial in on that."
Defensive coordinator Jonathan Patke sees big things for Weaver.
"We needed a safety. We felt like we needed some age in that room, with Jaylen gone. So, we searched in the portal to find that experience. We don't want to just acquire talent. We want guys who fit our system. He has all the accolades and then you hear his story. He's from the same area of Houston that I'm from. What it shows is that he's very hard-working, very resilient.Â
"He's very versatile. He can tackle, he can cover, he's got a nose for the ball. He's not very big but he has elite attributes that we were looking for. Once you get him on campus and you figure out his family and who he trains with, everybody loved him. He checked a lot of boxes for us and we're glad we got him."
Patke's defense has two other impact transfers.
Jaiden Francois comes from Utah State, after starting at UCF. He projects to take graduated Cam Bergeron's hybrid safety/linebacker position. Like Weaver, Francois can tackle and cover and has a 75-yard pick six against Idaho State to his credit.
He's a South Florida native and Patke says he and Diaz recruited him hard when they were at Miami.
"We came to know him as a person and a man," Patke noted. "We knew his journey. He played that star position (at Utah State). We thought it was a perfect fit. We brought him in on a visit and it just felt very comfortable. He has a wealth of knowledge playing the position."
Josiah Green dominated the Ivy League last season at Dartmouth and was a unanimous All-Ivy selection. At 6-1, 285, he's small for a power conference defensive tackle. But graduated Duke star Kendy Charles was about the same size and he was second-team All-ACC last season.Â
"In the system we play, we don't mind the 6-foot D-tackle, as long as he's athletic and can move and get vertical," Patke says. "We felt like we needed to add age to our D-tackle room and experience, so we find Josiah from Dartmouth, a guy that terrorized that league and you start doing the background on him and his coaches say nothing but great things about him. He's just a special young man.
"Pound for pound he's one of the strongest guys on our roster. He can squat a house, he can bench press a house. He's as powerful as anybody I've seen in the weight room numbers-wise. When it clicks he's going to be a special, special player for us."
Duke has six offensive transfers who figure to make an impact, led by quarterback Darian Mensah (featured elsewhere in this publication). Four of the other five are skill-position players.
The exception is Jordan Larsen, a 310-pound guard who played 24 games at South Dakota and helped the Coyotes to last season's 2024 FCS semifinals.
Larsen has the early inside shot at replacing Caleb Krings, the only offensive lineman to graduate from the starting lineup.Â
"Larsen is a great guy, a great (weight) room guy, works hard," veteran Duke lineman Justin Pickett says. "He had an incredible summer, working hard, putting in extra work in the weight room, on the field. He's learning a lot and I think he'll jump right in and help this team."
Tight end Landen King is a late addition. After beginning his career at Auburn, King caught 17 passes in two seasons at Utah.
Third-team All-ACC wide receivers Jordan Moore and Eli Pancol used up their eligibility last season after combining for 115 receptions. Duke brought in a pair of grad transfers to help replace them.
Andrel Anthony has 47 career receptions playing at Michigan and Oklahoma.Â
Cooper Barkate was a D-2 All-American at Harvard last season, after grabbing 83 passes for 1,084 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Barkate says he loved his time at Harvard but wanted an opportunity to play a higher level of football while maintaining academic rigor. He took extra classes, graduated from Harvard a year early and recognized that Duke "had a lot of open room in the receiver room."
Barkate did not play spring ball but has spent the summer bonding with his new teammates and learning the playbook, the latter perhaps not a big ask for someone who graduated from Harvard a year early.
Barkate, with good size at 6-1, 195, says he runs a 4.4 40 and has gotten stronger than ever under director of football sports performance David Feeley.
"I told my parents the other day I feel very put together, like a machine."
The California native gives a self-scout.
"My number one strength is my speed. I have that in my back pocket. My other biggest strength is my route running. I've done it for awhile and I was fortunate to grow up with a lot of great receiver coaches, so I learned the art of route running pretty young."
He adds that he can win 50-50 balls.
Anderson Castle is a running back. He grew up in Boone, North Carolina and spent five years at Appalachian State.
What compelled him to come down the mountain?
"We didn't have the best year last year at App. Made some coaching changes. I figured I might as well see what was out there. The opportunity to come to Duke arose and it seemed like it was too good to turn down for me."
Castle is 6-0, 220 and pretty tough to stop between the tackles. He had eight rushing TDs at App State. He embraces that role.
"My running style is downhill. I don't do a lot of dancing. I'm confident in my decision making. When I make one cut behind the line, it's go. I'm a guy that's going to fall forward. Getting those extra two or three yards is something I take pride in."
But he adds that he's not just a between-the-tackles runner.
"I've been working a lot in the open field, getting quicker feet. I've got speed to break away."
There's proof. Castle had a 49-yard TD run against Troy in 2020.
Castle is the only transfer running back but he's not the only experienced addition to the running back room.
Chris Foster joined Duke in the spring after running backs coach Willie Simmons took the head job at Florida International.
Foster joined Duke from Northwestern, after early coaching stints at his alma mater Gardner-Webb, then Appalachian State, Maryville, Georgia Southern, East Carolina and Northwestern.
In other words, he knows something about being the new kid in school.
"You can see where Coach Diaz is taking this program, where it's heading to," he says. "It's definitely trending upwards. Also the opportunity to coach and learn under coach (Jonathan) Brewer has been really good for me. I grew up in Spartanburg, South Carolina. The opportunity to get closer to home and work at a great institution, to me that's a no-brainer."
Foster says he admires Castle's willingness "to get out of his comfort zone" and come to Duke. "I think he's a great all-around back," Foster adds. "I don't think he's limited to short-yardage and goal line. He can be an every-down back."
Grad student transfers are in a curious position. On one hand they are among the team's oldest and most experienced players. On the other hand they're newcomers to a school, with a big learning curve.
Barkate threads the needle.
"It's definitely a little strange. You're an older dude but also a rookie at the same time. I'm not that vocal a guy and definitely had the humility to know when to be a leader and when to sit back, watch and learn. As an older guy you want to lead by example but you also need to know when to do it their way."
The transfers have hung around all summer, bonding as transfers, while bonding with their position groups and the team as a whole.
Not a big group in terms of numbers. But a big group in terms of potential impact for a Duke program trending upwards.
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/ FootballCoach Diaz Media Availability: Tulane
Wednesday, September 10
Darian Mensah Media Availability: Tulane
Tuesday, September 09
Josiah Green Media Availability: Tulane
Tuesday, September 09
Coach Patke Press Conference: Tulane
Monday, September 08
