Travis Bates

Duke's Travis Bates runs away from Syracuse defenders during a 38-3 Blue Devil victory on September 27, 2025.

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Travis Bates and Chandler Rivers prepare to make a tackle at Northwestern.

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Position:
Running Back
Height:
5-11
Class:
Redshirt Junior
Hometown:
Tampa, Fla.

CAREER: Two-year letterman (2023, 25) who transitioned from running back to safety during the summer of 2024 and back to running back in the 2025 summer ... in 38 career games, registered six tackles and 14 rushes for 99 yards (7.07) … tallied a career-high five rushes against Syracuse in 2025 … posted a career-best 44 yards rushing against the Orange in 2025 … tallied a career-long 39-yard rush at Syracuse in 2025 ... carded one tackle versus Elon and Georgia Tech in 2024 ... played 366 career snaps.

2025: Saw action in all 14 games … rushed nine times for 57 yards (6.33) … recorded all carries and yards in consecutive games at Syracuse and California ... carded five carries for 44 yards at Syracuse and four attempts for 13 yards a week later at the Bears ... turned in a season-best 39 yard gallop against the Orange ... a valuable member of Duke's special teams … on the field for 112 snaps.

2024: Academic All-ACC selection ... played in seven games, missing the Northwestern, Florida State, SMU, NC State, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest contests … booked two tackles with one each versus Elon and Georgia Tech ... a valuable member of Duke's kick coverage units ... on the field for 48 snaps.

2023: Saw action in all 13 games … rushed five times for 42 yards (8.40) … recorded a season-best 32 rushing yards on one carry against Northwestern … posted a year-high three rushes against Lafayette ... also added two tackles on special teams … on the field for 151 snaps.

2022: Played in four games, seeing action against Boston College, Kansas, UCF and Virginia … recorded two tackles on special teams against Virginia … on the field for 55 snaps.

PRIOR TO DUKE: Lettered four seasons at Berkeley Prep under head coach Dominic Ciao … tabbed as a three-star recruit by 247sports.com and Rivals.com … listed as the No. 36 running back in the country by Rivals.com … amassed 3,845 rushing yards in 44 career games … rushed for 2,045 yards as a senior, the second-most rushing yards in school history … led Berkeley Prep to a 35-9 record, including a 12-1 mark as a senior … helped the Buccaneers to an appearance in the 2021 Florida state championship game … all-conference selection and offensive player of the year as a senior … lettered two seasons in track & field … placed first in the long jump at the district championships and graduated with the third-best distance in Berkeley Prep history.

PERSONAL: Majoring in sociology while pursuing a certificate in markets and management … son of Travis and Lashawn Bates … cousin, Julius Peppers, was a three-year letterwinner as a defensive end at the University of North Carolina (1999-2000-01), who received the Lombardi and Bednarik Awards and finished second at UNC in career sacks and TFL en route to being named a two-time All-America honoree (2000 and 2001 [unanimous]) before being selected as the second overall pick in the 2002 NFL Draft by the Carolina Panthers and playing 17 professional seasons with the Panthers (2002-09; 2017-18), Chicago Bears (2010-13) and Green Bay Packers (2014-16) as a nine-time NFL Pro Bowl selection who was inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in 2021 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2024.