Javen Nicholas

Senior wide receiver for Duke. 2025: 60 catches, 740 receiving yards, 5 TD.

WR · Duke · Sr. · #5

5′9″ · 190 lb · New Orleans, LA · St. Augustine

CFB Index 64 · #107 of 485 WRsHigh confidenceAll-ConferenceTransferred Charlotte → Duke for 2026

Next upSat Sep 19 · 4 pm ETvs StanfordWallace Wade StadiumDuke by 9.5

The numbers

740

receiving yards · 2025

60 catches · 5 TD · 12.3 per catch

Best game: 7 rec, 187 yds, 2 TD, vs North Texas

His career numbers, season by season

The story

4 wide receiver for Duke. 2025: 60 catches, 740 receiving yards, 5 TD.

Transferred from Charlotte to Duke in 2026.

His career, year by year

How he plays

Wins underneath on volume and route precision.

Explosive rate: 66th percentile.

The full scouting read

Javen Nicholas

WR · Duke · Sr · #5

Wins underneath on volume and route precision. Across four seasons and two programs, two head coaches: Brian Kelly and Tim Albin. In 2025 the league put his name on paper for the first time: All-AAC. The receipt: 187 rec yds, 20 rush yds against North Texas — Week 9, 2025.

Low coverage — composed from the verified record.

positional archetype classification
head-coach lineage
recognition record
game log

2025 snapshot

Season context · Team result + system

2022LSU10-4HC: Brian Kelly · Balanced

2023LSU10-3HC: Brian Kelly · Balanced

2024LSU9-4HC: Brian Kelly · Pass-leaning

2025Charlotte1-11HC: Tim Albin · Balanced, slow tempo

Where this profile ranks vs the WR cohort

Box-score + play-by-play EPA percentiles

64Quality starter #107 of 485?

High confidence13 metrics · season cumulative

Elite: receptions (89th percentile). Strength: rec yards (84th percentile).

Real play-by-play efficiency

Explosive rate#273 / 798 · 66th pct

12.7%

EPA / target#381 / 798 · 52nd pct

0.44

Yards / catch#385 / 798 · 52nd pct

11.6

Catch rate#423 / 798 · 47th pct

67.1%

TD rate#491 / 798 · 38th pct

1.3%

Box-score rates (8)

Receptions#61 / 558 · 89th pct

Rec yards#89 / 558 · 84th pct

740

Rec TDs#96 / 558 · 78th pct

Long catch#124 / 558 · 77th pct

Rush yards#76 / 287 · 73rd pct

Yards / catch#317 / 558 · 42nd pct

12.3

Rush TDs#67 / 287 · 39th pct

Fumbles lost#86 / 218 · 36th pct

Season trend

EPA / target— first qualifying season

Explosive rate— first qualifying season

Catch rate— first qualifying season

TD rate— first qualifying season

Yards / catch— first qualifying season

Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season. Most bars are box-score rates; EPA / success-rate bars are computed from real play-by-play (offense only — no defensive EPA model exists yet).

Situational

Situational · Share of own targets (PBP, 2025)

Third-down role

35%28 of his 79 targets came on third down · Receiver median is 24%

Splits & context

Splits · Per-game

2025 season · 12 games

Home/Road · Season halves

Home vs Road

	REC/g	YDS/g	YPR	TD/g
Home7g	5.7	78.9	13.2	0.4
Road5g	4.0	37.6	10.0	0.4

First half vs Second half

	REC/g	YDS/g	YPR	TD/g
Weeks 1-76g	4.8	50.7	9.0	0.2
Weeks 8+6g	5.2	72.7	14.7	0.7

Supporting cast · Scheme

Staff and system around the player

2026 season

Head Coach

Manny Diaz

Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.

Awards

Player standing · 2025

All-Conference

Picked for an all-conference team by at least one selector.

Recognition

Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex

Production · CFB Index Score

64 · #107 of 485 WRs

Unranked recruit. Now #107 at the position.

Career stats

Season	Team
2025	Charlotte	60	740	12.3	5	--
2024	LSU	3	24	8.0	0	--
2023	LSU	--	--	--	--	--
2022	LSU	1	2	2.0	0	--
Career		64	766	12.0	5	--

Season	Team
2025	Charlotte	7	36	--	99	--
2024	LSU	--	--	--	--	--
2023	LSU	--	--	86	27	--
2022	LSU	--	--	36	--	--
Career		7	36	122	126	--

Signature plays

Signature plays · top plays by |EPA|

The plays that mattered most

fact

Week 11 · East Carolina · 4&7 · Q2 · EPA +6.21(07:03) Shotgun #12 G.Loftis pass complete deep left to #5 J.Nicholas caught at ECU17, for 46 yards to the ECU00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 06:52, 1ST DOWN #37 L.Boyd kick attempt good (H: #95 B.Long, LS: #39 C.Garfield)
Week 9 · North Texas · 1&10 · Q2 · EPA +5.15(11:34) Shotgun #12 G.Loftis pass complete deep middle to #5 J.Nicholas caught at UNT18, for 64 yards to the UNT00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 11:27, 1ST DOWN #37 L.Boyd kick attempt good (H: #95 B.Long, LS: #39 C.Garfield)
Week 9 · North Texas · 4&1 · Q1 · EPA +4.28(01:21) No Huddle-Shotgun #12 G.Loftis pass complete short right to #5 J.Nicholas caught at UNT28, for 33 yards to the UNT00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 01:15, 1ST DOWN #37 L.Boyd kick attempt good (H: #95 B.Long, LS: #39 C.Garfield)
Week 4 · Rice · 3&10 · Q4 · EPA +4.22Grayson Loftis pass complete to Javen Nicholas for 31 yds for a TD (Grayson Loftis pass to Javen Nicholas for Two-Point Conversion)
Week 7 · Army · 4&2 · Q2 · EPA -3.75Zach Wilcke pass complete to Javen Nicholas for 1 yd to the ARMY 15
Week 2 · North Carolina · 3&10 · Q2 · EPA +3.65Conner Harrell pass complete to Javen Nicholas for 13 yds to the UNC 43 for a 1ST down North Carolina Penalty, Personal Foul (Khmori House) to the UNC 28 for a 1ST down
Week 6 · South Florida · 3&10 · Q3 · EPA +3.44Zach Wilcke pass complete to Javen Nicholas for 31 yds to the USF 20 for a 1ST down
Week 2 · North Carolina · 3&10 · Q2 · EPA +3.37Conner Harrell pass complete to Javen Nicholas for 19 yds to the UNC 44 for a 1ST down
Week 11 · East Carolina · 1&10 · Q3 · EPA +3.35(09:00) Shotgun #12 G.Loftis pass complete deep middle to #5 J.Nicholas caught at ECU00, for 43 yards to the ECU00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 08:54, 1ST DOWN #8 S.Brown pass attempt Successful
Week 3 · Monmouth · 2&6 · Q2 · EPA +2.89Conner Harrell pass complete to Javen Nicholas for 28 yds to the MONM 34 for a 1ST down Monmouth Penalty, Face Mask (15 yards) (Hunter Watson) to the MONM 19 for a 1ST down

Game log

Game log · Week-by-week

2025 season · 12 games

Box score · CFBD

Wk	Opp	REC	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG	Note
Wk 1	L 11-34vs App State	1	9	9.0	0	9
Wk 2	L 3-20vs North Carolina	11	122	11.1	0	20
Wk 3	W 42-35vs Monmouth	5	46	9.2	0	28
Wk 4	L 17-28vs Rice	5	93	18.6	1	31
Wk 6	L 26-54@ South Florida	5	36	7.2	0	31
Wk 7	L 7-24@ Army	2	-2	-1.0	0	1
Wk 8	L 14-49vs Temple	5	50	10.0	0	17
Wk 9	L 20-54vs North Texas	7	187	26.7	2	64	Season-high 187 yds
Wk 11	L 22-48@ East Carolina	3	90	30.0	2	46	2 TD catches
Wk 12	L 7-28vs UTSA	6	45	7.5	0	20
Wk 13	L 3-35@ Georgia	6	24	4.0	0	6
Wk 14	L 0-27@ Tulane	4	40	10.0	0	24
Total		60	740	11.9	5	64

How he plays

Play style

Runs precise routes in tight quarters. Volume player who keeps chains moving.

CFB Index positional classification

DNA match

Player DNA

Slot Technician

Runs precise routes in tight quarters. Volume player who keeps chains moving.

His 2025 production profile sits closest to Yusuf Ali’s 2021 season.

Yusuf Ali

82%match

Middle Tennessee · 2021

Michael Mathison

Akron · 2021

81%

Deion Burks

Oklahoma · 2025

NFL Rd 7

77%

Tyler King

New Mexico State · 2025

75%

Roderic Burns

North Texas · 2023

74%

Matches Yusuf on

Total EPA (college ability)

Class year

EPA / play (adj)

Differs from Yusuf on

Reception volume (higher)

Weight (higher)

Through 1 college season, his career arc tracks closest to Rashod Bateman’s path through Minnesota.

Rashod Bateman

99%match

Minnesota · 2020

All-Big TenNFL Rd 1 · Pk 27

Kobe Clark

Abilene Christian · 2022

98%

Josh Imatorbhebhe

Illinois · 2020

98%

Jarrod Barnes

Central Arkansas · 2023

98%

Tamorrion Terry

Florida State · 2020

97%

Matches Rashod on

Yards per reception

As a senior, his production profile tracks closest to Dashaun Davis's senior season at App State (2023).

Dashaun Davis

72%match

App State · 2023

Gavin Freeman

Oklahoma State · 2025

72%

Javen Jacobs

Utah State · 2025

66%

Zavion Thomas

LSU · 2025

All-SECNFL Rd 3 · Pk 25

65%

Brock Spalding

East Carolina · 2025

64%

Matches Dashaun on

Total EPA (college ability)

TD rate

Differs from Dashaun on

Reception volume (higher)

EPA / play (adj) (lower)

Weight (higher)

Background

2026 ACCOLADES Biletnikoff Award Watch List Shriners Children's East-West Bowl 1,000 2026: Graduate transfer wide receiver from UNC Charlotte who spent the 2025 season with the 49ers after three seasons (2022-23-24) at LSU ... in 38 career games (11 starts), has totaled 64 receptions for 766 yard...

via goduke.com ↗

The receiver room · Duke

#5Javen NicholasWR · Sr.740 receiving yards · 2025
#8Jayden MooreWR · So.42 receiving yards · 2025
#6Jonah BurtonWR · Sr.2 games · 2026
#3Blake RohrerWR · Sr.no box-score line yet
#17Jared RichardsonWR · Sr.no box-score line yet

8 more on the roster · Duke team page

Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology

202512 games

2026

2025 snapshot

Situational

Splits & context

Awards

All-Conference

Career stats

Signature plays

Game log

How he plays

DNA match

Slot Technician

Background

The receiver room · Duke