Miami continues to add at the wide receiver position through the portal, securing the commitment of Duke wideout Cooper Barkate.
A 6-foot-1,195-pounder from Newport Beach Calif., Barkate spent three seasons at Harvard before spending his 2025 season as a graduate transfer at Duke, being Miami quarterback Darian Mensah’s go-to receiver.
Last year, he reeled in 72 catches for 1,106 yards for the Blue Devils which included seven touchdowns. Barkate’s yard total only came second in the ACC to Miami’s own Malachi Toney and was good for ninth in the country.
Following his career year, Barkate was named Second Team All-ACC along with Mensah and Duke running back Nate Sheppard.
Barkate and Mensah’s chemistry led to a historic season for Duke under former Miami head coach Manny Diaz. The Blue Devil offense was among the best in college football in 2025, averaging 34.6 points per game and 285.4 passing yards per game.
That success led to a 9-5 campaign capitalized by the programs’s first outright ACC Championship since 1962 in a 27-20 victory over Virginia and a 42-39 Sun Bowl victory over Arizona State.
A sure handed receiver who only dropped six passes on the year, he averaged 15.2 yards per catch, and shined in the intermediate game. That’s because he pairs his smooth routes with impressive YAC ability, turning chain-moving catches into game-changing plays.
His standout games included 13 catches for 172 yards against Georgia Tech, and six catches for 127 yards during a 46-45 shootout versus Clemson.
And in the ACC Championship game against Virginia, Barkate totaled 91 yards on five catches.
Barkate graduated from Harvard in May 2025 with a degree in economics and was pursuing a master’s degree in management studies from Duke’s Fuqua School of Business.
The graduate student comes from a family of athletics. Harold Barkate, Cooper’s father, was a three-year letterman as a punter for UCLA. Cooper’s sister, Maddie, lettered for four years and earned All-Ivy League honors as a junior at Harvard.
It’s safe to say Mensah will have plenty of options to air the ball out as Barkate joins incoming transfers Cam Vaughn and Vandrevious Jacobs as Miami’s portal additions, complementing a current wide receiver room of Malachi Toney, Josh Moore and UM’s incoming freshman class.
