Wide receiver Joe Wilkins Jr. was a member of Notre Dame's kick return unit as recently as Notre Dame's 41-24 victory at Syracuse on Oct. 29.

But the graduate student already has his sights set on next season. He announced Monday he will enter the NCAA's transfer portal to search for a new home for his final season of college football.

The 6-foot-1, 202-pound Wilkins had trouble cracking Notre Dame's wide receiver rotation this season after suffering a Lisfranc fracture in his right foot in the spring. Wilkins had surgery to repair the injury on April 1 and worked his way back to be available for the Irish this season.

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In early September, head coach Marcus Freeman said Wilkins' foot was continuing to heal.

“I hope that he goes out and he can perform at the level that he feels he can do and the coaching staff expects him to," Freeman said before the Marshall game. "He's had a good week of practice. Again, his foot will continue to be a focal point for us to make sure that, hey, we're continuing to heal this foot and that it can help him obviously perform at the level that he obviously truly aspires to do."

Wilkins never played more than seven snaps on offense for the Irish this season. The last time he played receiver for Notre Dame was Oct. 22 against UNLV. Wilkins also didn't play any snaps on special teams against Clemson this past Saturday.

Wilkins will finish his Notre Dame career with 11 receptions for 124 yards and two touchdowns. All that production came in two seasons as a junior and senior in 2020 and 2021. He caught his touchdowns against Duke in 2020 and Florida State in 2021.

When Wilkins tore his MCL against Cincinnati in October of last season, it cut his year short after five games. Because Wilkins redshirted as a freshman at Notre Dame and the NCAA's eligibility relief from the COVID-19 pandemic, Wilkins will be eligible to play a sixth season next year.

Wilkins signed with Notre Dame in 2018 rated by Rivals as a three-star cornerback out of North Fort Myers (Fla.) High.

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