The ACU football team is welcoming a former three-star recruit to spring practice.
Former University of Houston wide receiver Larry McDuffey transferred to ACU after playing two seasons for the Cougars.
McDuffey was a standout at North Shore High School, which is in the Houston area, and made an immediate impact in his college career.
McDuffey’s saw plenty of playing time in 2012 as a true freshman, earning a spot on the Conference USA All-Freshman team. He caught eight passes for 100 yards and a touchdown against archrival Rice University. McDuffey finished the year with 28 catches for over 300 yards.
In 2013 McDuffey had a frustrating season at Houston. After starting five of the first six games, McDuffey was given a lesser role while he also struggled with injuries and was never made a focal point in the offense.
Now, McDuffey is looking to start over at ACU. The 5’10″ junior is versatile and has plenty of speed to burn. In high school, he registered a sub 4.4 forty-yard dash. He also contributed to two straight high school state championships in track, where he ran the 100-meter and participated in the triple jump.
The ACU offense has been explosive for nearly ten years since head coach Ken Collums arrived as an offensive coordinator. Collums’ track record with small receivers speaks for itself, which makes McDuffey a perfect fit for ACU.
Johnny Knox, who was 5’11″, Knox had 30 touchdown catches and over 2,200 yards in only a couple of seasons. Taylor Gabriel and Darrell Cantu-Harkless also had unbelievable careers at ACU despite being well under six-feet-tall. Gabriel had over 3,000 yards receiving and Cantu-Harkless is the only player in ACU history to have over 1,000 yards rushing, receiving, and in return yards.
Collums’ knack for utilizing smaller players on the outside will undoubtedly benefit McDuffey, who should be an impact player for the Wildcats as soon as he is able to get on the field.
Unfortunately, McDuffey will have to sit out the 2014 campaign because of NCAA rules that prohibit transfers from playing the next season if both schools are in the same division. ACU’s recent move to Div. I puts them in the same division as the University of Houston.
Even though he won’t see any action for the Wildcats next season, the anticipation for McDuffey is high because he could be the next great receiver of the Collums era at ACU.
