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UNC running back details decision to withdraw from transfer portal, return for 2025 season
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- UNC running back details decision to withdraw from transfer portal, return for 2025 season
Thanks to the transfer portal , it's extremely rare for college football players to spend their entire careers at one school.
There's one specific player at UNC, though, who'll play his fifth and final season in Carolina Blue this fall. Any guesses?
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The player in question is running back Caleb Hood , who began his collegiate career at North Carolina back in 2021. Hood took advantage of his starting opportunity the following season, rushing for a career-high 250 yards, but he rarely saw the field in 2023 and 2024.
Why come back for one last hurrah in Chapel Hill, particularly with limited playing time in each of the past two seasons? After Training Camp on Saturday afternoon, Hood spoke about that decision.
"For me, I just want to play somewhere," Hood said. "I feel like Carolina's always been my dream school. I was in the portal, I just want to go play somewhere and get some playing time. Prove to myself that I can be like that guy. I talked to (Bill) Belichick and he wanted me to come back, he and (Freddie) Kitchens and (Michael) Lombardi, I just feel like this is where God wanted me to be at the end of the day. This is the place for me."
As Hood alluded to above, he entered the portal ahead of bowl season. Not too long after UConn handed the Tar Heels in a Fenway Bowl appearance, Hood withdrew himself.
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UNC enters its highly-anticipated 2025 campaign with a largely-inexperienced running back room. Davion Gause should be the Day One starter, but Hood's experience – and loyalty – might just earn him a start or two.
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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC RB Caleb Hood talks decision to withdraw from transfer portal
