Coming off a 7-4 record, Jerry Schmitt is preparing for his 14th season as the Duquesne Dukes head football coach.
The Dukes will open up the 2018 season on the road as they travel to UMass on Aug. 25.
Schmitt will return another solid team as they look to win their fifth Northeast Conference title in the last eight seasons. Duquesne has recorded 20 winning seasons in the last 23 years.
The 2018 Duquesne roster will have 21 new members including five transfers from FBS programs. Schmitt and his staff were able to get commitments from players from Pennsylvania (6), Florida (6), Ohio (3), California (1), Maryland (1), Michigan (1), New Jersey (1), Rhode Island (1) and Texas (1).
Duquesne’s five FBS transfers include:
Kam Carter, DT: appeared in nine games for Pitt last season. Carter received playing time early in the season but played sparingly as the year went on.
Daivon Ellison, DB: appeared in 16 games over the last two seasons for Syracuse and started nine games in 2016, ranking fifth among defensive backs in the ACC in tackles per game.
Isaiah Johnson-Mack, WR: started all 12 games last season for Washington State and finished second on the team in receiving yards and touchdowns.
Daniel Parr, QB: started three games last season for Florida Atlantic while appearing in eight games total. For the season, Parr threw for 588 yards and four touchdowns.
Reid Harrison-Ducros: joins the Dukes after transferring from Boise State. Harrison-Ducros is a former three-star recruit who’s appeared in 20 games the last two seasons for Boise State making 26 tackles in those games.
Aside from getting these five former FBS players, Duquesne was also able to get commitments from six WPIAL players: LB Anthony Dellovade (West Allegheny), OL Eric Neill (Central Valley), DB Mahlik Strozier (Rochester), DB Tyler Wallace (Beaver) and Will Weber (West Allegheny).
A couple of out-of-state recruits to keep an eye on are WR Isiah Adams (Reseda, California), who was a three-time All-City player from Southern California while Ky’Ren Cunningham (West Bloomfield, Michigan) was the only running back in the Dukes Class of 2018.
UPDATE (10:19 AM)-
**Isaiah Johnson-Mack announced on Twitter last night that he is transferring to Bowling Green.
