Liberty transfer DL Kendy Charles commits to Duke Blue Devils

Wade-Peeryby:Wade Peery01/17/24

The Duke Blue Devils plucked a prospect from the transfer portal on Wednesday evening. Former Liberty defensive lineman Kendy Charles committed to Duke. Charles made the announcement on his Twitter page.

He recently visited the Michigan State Spartans and considered them in his portal recruitment process.

Charles played four seasons for the Flames, tallying 107 tackles, 13.5 sacks, one forced fumble and one pass defended. In seven appearances this season, Charles collected 24 tackles, three sacks and one fumble recovery.

Due to injuries, Charles was limited this season. However, he shined in the 2022 campaign, where he was a First Team All-Independent honoree (College Football Network, Phil Steele). Charles is also being actively recruited by Oregon State and Memphis.

Charles boosted Liberty to a 13-0 record this year, the first time in program history. He is a disruptive presence up-front, boasting a solid 6-foot, 280-pound frame.

Charles played high school football at Orange Park (FL), where he was a three-star prospect. He was the No. 2,699 overall recruit in the 2020 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

Duke also landed a major quarterback prospect out of the transfer portal this offseason, former Texas dual threat quarterback Maalik Murphy.

Murphy was the backup quarterback behind Quinn Ewers this season. When Ewers suffered an injury in October against Houston, Murphy stepped in for the remainder of that game and the two following contests against BYU and Kansas State. The team went undefeated during the three-game stretch.

For the season, Murphy was 40-for-71 with 477 yards and three touchdowns over three interceptions. During the Longhorns’ win over Texas Tech, Murphy sustained an injury when he was hit by two Texas players blocking a member of the Red Raider kickoff team. He recovered in time to play limited minutes in the Big 12 Championship.

Murphy drew immense praise from Steve Sarkisian for sticking with the Longhorns and making the most of his opportunities, especially after Arch Manning arrived on campus and rumors of tampering swirled after Murphy’s strong Orange-White Game performance in April.

Murphy played high school football at Junipero Serra (CA), where he was a four-star prospect. He was the No. 205 overall recruit in the 2022 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire

On3’s Grant Grubbs also contributed to this article.