After leading the Duke Blue Devils to a 9-3 record in Manny Diaz’s first season as head coach in Durham, Blue Devils signal-caller Maalik Murphy is planning on finding a new home.
The QB told ESPN and Pete Thamel that he plans on entering the transfer portal.
Murphy was sensational at Duke during the 2024 season. Along with setting the school record with 26 TD passes in a season, Murphy passed for 2,933 yards and recorded multiple TD passes in all but three games all season.
After suffering back-to-back losses to then-No. 22 SMU (11-2) and No. 5 Miami (10-2), Murphy led the Blue Devils to three consecutive wins to close out the regular season. That strong finish to the season gave Duke nine wins, which is the most for the program since 2014.
Murphy transferred to Duke after spending his freshman season at Texas. In his one season in Austin, Murphy backed up Quinn Ewers and started two games when Ewers suffered a midseason shoulder injury. In those two starts – both of which were wins – Murphy had three TDs and three interceptions.
Although Duke is set to face No. 14 Ole Miss (9-3) in the Gator Bowl on Jan. 2, Murphy said he will not play in the game.
While this seems like a big loss for Duke at first glance, there may be a silver lining to the announcement.
Tulane QB Darian Mensah, who passed for 2,723 yards, 22 TDs and only six interceptions during his freshman season with the Green Wave, scheduled a visit with Duke on Tuesday, per Thamel. ESPN’s No. 1 overall portal recruit, who also had 132 yards and one TD on the ground for Tulane, would give Duke a worthy replacement at QB going into 2025 if he chooses the Blue Devils.
Whether Duke is able to get Mensah or not, the loss of the former ESPN300 recruit Murphy cannot be understated given what he accomplished in 2024.
Wherever he takes his talents to next, Murphy has two years of eligibility remaining after a breakout season in Durham.
