Where did Luke McCaffrey go to college?

Luke McCaffrey, a wide receiver for the Washington Commaders, was selected by the team as the 100th overall pick in the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft. The pick was obtained through a trade that saw Chase Young traded to the San Francisco 49ers in the season prior. Born on April 2, 2001, in Colorado, McCaffrey’s life was surrounded by all things football, given that his father was one of the top wide receivers of his time; playing for the Denver Broncos at the time of Luke’s birth. As of September 2024, he has played in two games, starting one and recording three receptions for 18 receiving yards.

Luke McCaffrey's College

Luke McCaffrey went to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (2019-2020) and Rice University (2021-2023). He spent three years, at the former, playing for the Nebraska Cornhuskers. After featuring in four games with no starts in 2019, he redshirted his first year in 2019. In 2020, as a redshirt freshman, McCaffrey featured in seven games and got two starts. He finished the year with 466 passing yards and one touchdown and added a further 364 yards and three touchdowns along the ground.

Prior to the start of the 2021 season, McCaffrey transferred to Rice University in Houston, Texas, and played in nine games but got only three starts. He finished the year throwing for 313 yards and two touchdowns. In 2022, seeing as he was getting limited starts at the quarterback position, McCaffrey transitioned to a wide receiver. Surprisingly, the former Cornhusker led his team with the most receptions (58) that year and finished with 723 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns. The following year, McCaffrey had the best season of his college career, playing 13 games and recording 15 attempts for 117 rushing yards, 71 receptions for 992 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns.

Luke McCaffrey’s college stats

Season	School	Games		Passing							Rushing				Receiving
		GP	GS	Cmp	Att	Pct	Yds	TD	Int	Rtg	Att	Yds	Avg	TD	Rec	Yds	Avg	TD
2019	Nebraska	4	0	9	12	75	142	2	0	229.4	24	166	6.9	1	1	12	12	0
2020		7	2	48	76	63.2	466	1	6	103.2	65	364	5.6	3	1	5	5	0
2021	Rice	9	3	31	62	50	313	2	4	90.1	41	132	3.2	2	—	—	—	—
2022		11	10	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	12	148	12.3	1	58	723	12.5	6
2023		13	15	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	15	117	7.8	0	71	992	14	13
Career		44	29	88	152	58	921	5	10	106.5	157	927	5.9	7	131	1,732	13.2	19

Luke McCaffrey's High School

McCaffrey’s football career started when he played as a wide receiver and a defensive back in his first two years for Valor Christian High School in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. He got the chance to play under his father as Ed McCaffrey was offered the head coach job at the school. His older brother Dylan was the quarterback on the same team. As a receiver, McCaffrey caught 47 passes for 717 receiving yards and had nine touchdowns in his sophomore year. Interestingly, after his brother left the school, Luke McCaffrey played partially as the quarterback in his junior season, where he threw for 878 yards with six touchdowns but also had 3 picks.

In his senior year, he played quarterback and guided the team to a perfect 14-0 season and also won the Colorado State championship. He finished his senior year with 2,202 passing yards and had a touchdown-interception ratio of 21-4. He also added 526 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on the ground. Being rated as a 4-star recruit, McCaffrey had several offers from universities such as Michigan, Colorado, Colorado State, UCLA, and more, but he chose to go to the University of Nebraska.