Reserve running back Tony Jackson was dismissed from the Duke football team, according to ESPN and the News & Observer.
Jackson was booted from the squad for “failing to uphold the standard of conduct expected of a Blue Devil football student-athlete,” head coach David Cutcliffe said in a press release.
The junior, who switched from defensive back to running back, is from Rochester, N.Y., and played in 11 games in 2008, accumulating 259 yards rushing and 106 yards receiving while backing up Jay Hollingsworth and Clifford Harris. His best performance of 2008 came against Miami; he rushed for 69 yards on 11 carries and almost led the Blue Devils to an upset victory.
The loss will place more of the burden on senior Re’quan Boyette, who missed the entire 2008 season after complications from knee surgery forced him to use a medical redshirt. Boyette led the Blue Devils in rushing in the 2006 and 2007 seasons; he suffered a knee injury just two weeks before the start of last season.
The Blue Devils also return Hollingsworth, who as a freshman scampered for 399 yards and a touchdown.
