Miami Emerges As Favorite For Duke Transfer QB Darian Mensah

Trinton Breeze

Jan 16, 2026 1 min read

Word around college football today is Miami is now the team to beat for former Duke QB Darian Mensah, who recently entered the transfer portal on the last day. This isn’t some long shot, the Hurricanes are getting serious looks and buzz as the favorite to land him according to 247Sports.

He broke out at Tulane in 2024, starting all 13 games and throwing 2,723 yards with 22 touchdowns and only 6 interceptions while completing 65.9% of his throws. He also ran for 132 yards and a score.

He then transferred to Manny Diaz’s Duke squad for the 2025 season, and he took off even more piling up nearly 4,000 yards passing with 34 touchdowns and 6 picks and a completion rate around 67%.

Mensah is back in the portal, and Miami fans are hyped about the possibility of adding a proven Power-5 QB.

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3rd-43

Jan 20, 2026

htownkidd said:
I need this announced by Friday to help the pain.

Today would be better lol

C
CanesNation26

Jan 20, 2026

Is there a reason y’all are sweating this? Unless something has changed, he’ll be in the portal today or tomorrow, and should be on Miami’s campus thereafter, if he’s not already haha.

ZeroBeachCane3

Jan 20, 2026

CanesNation26 said:
Is there a reason y’all are sweating this? Unless something has changed, he’ll be in the portal today or tomorrow, and should be on Miami’s campus thereafter, if he’s not already haha.

Bc this is CIS

H
hotshot

Jan 20, 2026

JayCane20 said:
Duke is not going to fight any harder than Wisconsin did. They're not going to ruin the kids eligibility and have that on their image when they did the same thing to get him from Tulane.

They'll likely settle for a few million $ and let it go and be done with it.

Mensah will be in the orange and green regardless.

In the Demond Williams, Jr case, it looks like UDub "scared" Wilson into returning/staying in Seattle. He apparently didn't want any part of the legal wrangling they threatened him with.

So, is it fair to say it's what kind of backbone and tolerance a kid has to withstand pressure that can come into play in these cases? The Lucas situation went one way, the Demond Williams case the other.

SWFLSWAGG17

Jan 20, 2026

Tempest said:
Considering tomorrow is the last day to enroll, we’ll know before Friday.

Subject to a waiver.

R
ristwasdown

Jan 20, 2026

hotshot said:
In the Demond Williams, Jr case, it looks like UDub "scared" Wilson into returning/staying in Seattle. He apparently didn't want any part of the legal wrangling they threatened him with.

So, is it fair to say it's what kind of backbone and tolerance a kid has to withstand pressure that can come into play in these cases? The Lucas situation went one way, the Demond Williams case the other.

One was fighting a one year, big ten produced/designed contract template. The other had a two year contract written by duke that pre dates recent changes in the sport. We will be ok

JayCane20

Jan 20, 2026

hotshot said:
In the Demond Williams, Jr case, it looks like UDub "scared" Wilson into returning/staying in Seattle. He apparently didn't want any part of the legal wrangling they threatened him with.

So, is it fair to say it's what kind of backbone and tolerance a kid has to withstand pressure that can come into play in these cases? The Lucas situation went one way, the Demond Williams case the other.

Big 10 drew up revenue share MOUs and they're acting like they're binding. Spooking kids into this stuff.

Cane Fan 4 Life

Jan 20, 2026

hotshot said:
Hope there is some way forward that keeps lawyers on the sideline. Here's an AI take on possible legal implications:

Breach of Contract: Mensah is likely in breach of his two-year, $8 million contract by leaving the university before fulfilling its terms. Contracts are legally binding, and simply entering the transfer portal does not void them.

Exclusive NIL Rights: The contract reportedly grants Duke exclusive rights to Mensah's NIL. Duke believes only it has the power to cancel this agreement.

Withholding Future NIL Opportunities: The primary point of leverage for Duke is the ability to withhold consent for other schools or collectives to use Mensah's NIL rights. This could prevent him from earning revenue-sharing money or signing new NIL deals.

Potential Lawsuits:The situation could lead to litigation.

Against Mensah: Duke could sue Mensah for monetary damages resulting from the breach.

Against Miami (Tortious Interference): Duke could possibly pursue a claim of tortious interference against the University of Miami (or its associated collective) if it actively recruited Mensah into breaching his contract. Such claims in North Carolina could potentially result in triple damages.

Negotiation or Settlement: Instead of a protracted legal battle, the situation may be resolved through negotiation. Mensah's new school might agree to a buyout, with the value of his remaining contract potentially being deducted from that school's revenue-share pool under future NCAA

Not sure how the Duke contract works, BUT Mensah NOT being able to make money and profit from his NIL would directly would be a step in wrong direction. I don’t see it happening.

filmcane

Jan 20, 2026

I fully trust Mario, Rad and the UM legal team to have already looked through every angle regarding Mensah. Not worried at all about the legal stuff - it will work out. Mostly not worried about Mensah coming, but until he's officially here, I will still be a little nervous.

H
Hurry-Cane

Jan 20, 2026

Ghandi said:
They have the same leg to stand on that Wisconsin had with Lucas…and he was playing with Miami last year in a CFP final.

lol yep, and Duke can suck a fat one. They had no problem doing this to Tulane when they took Mensah but now are going to try to cry foul when we do the same? All in the game.

dycane

Jan 20, 2026

JayCane20 said:
Big 10 drew up revenue share MOUs and they're acting like they're binding. Spooking kids into this stuff.

The B10 would’ve never allowed WA to follow through and litigate. The last thing they wanted was having their form agreement tested in court. That was a conspicuous bluff.

H
hotshot

Jan 20, 2026

dycane said:
The B10 would’ve never allowed WA to follow through and litigate. The last thing they wanted was having their form agreement tested in court. That was a conspicuous bluff.

A bluff that worked. Williams remains Washington's QB.