forums

Duke QB Darian Mensah commits to Miami

View as article
Advertisement
Jonnyblaze said:
No shade at all on Cam. Love the guy. He's the GOAT UM QB. But, the foundation for where we are now started in 2023 when Mario, off a 5-7 season, got Fletcher, Mauigoa and Bain to sign.
Click to expand...
No question those guys are the foundational recruits...

Think what people are saying is Cam, as the portal QB then going #1 was massive.
 
Last edited:
RozayCane said:
Click to expand...

6 rings on the way
IMG_2438.gif
 
Gru said:
Click to expand...

As news broke that Darian Mensah was entering the transfer portal on the final day of the sport’s transfer window, rage and shock rolled in from Duke fans. The Blue Devils quarterback was gone after just one season, leaving them scrambling to find a starter for the 2026 season.
He committed to Miami earlier this week, with sources telling On3 he reset the transfer quarterback NIL market again. Mensah and Duke reached a settlement agreement to resolve a breach of his two-year, $8 million contract to transfer out of Durham.
In his first interview following his exit from Duke and the saga that followed, Mensah explained to On3 that the decision to transfer to Miami was not purely driven by cash.
“Miami is going to take me to the place I want to go, which is ultimately the NFL,” he told On3. “They’ve got NFL coaches. Coach [Shannon] Dawson, what he does with quarterbacks, his track record is pretty amazing, and it’s something I wanted to be a part of. The way coach [Mario] Cristobal protects the quarterback, he’s always going to have a solid O-line and then the weapons just all around the team and everyone that’s a part of Miami. Seemed like it was a great fit for me.
“… I want to make the NFL. I want to be a first-round draft pick. And all signs point towards Miami. Miami’s done it. If you watch what they do, they win. It’s just something I wanted to be a part of. I’ve always bet on myself, and I always will. I’ve done it once, and I’ll do it again. I want to be one of the best.”
It’s the second consecutive offseason he hit the portal. Mensah transferred into Duke from Tulane a year ago. But his decision to leave Duke was high profile, coming on the final day of the portal and coming with significant contractual hurdles.
The Blue Devils were initially granted a temporary restraining order prohibiting Mensah from enrolling in a new institution. But the settlement reached between Duke and Mensah earlier this week created a pathway for him to enroll at Miami. Sources have told On3 that the quarterback paid the Blue Devils a sum as part of the agreement.
But Mensah told On3 that the most difficult part of the transfer process was his mom dealing with the social media commentary. He’s represented by Noah Reisenfeld and Adie von Gontard of Young Money APAA Sports.
“It’s been pretty stressful, especially for my mom,” he said. “I tried to just stay off social media and let my team do all the work. I think they did a phenomenal job. My mom was more stressed than anything. So glad it’s all done with and glad it worked out.”
Mensah finished the 2025 season ranked No. 2 in FBS in total passing yards with 3,973 yards, which led the ACC. He was also second in FBS in passing touchdowns. He finished with a 68% completion percentage and led Duke to its first outright ACC championship since 1962.
The 27-game starter is viewed as a Heisman Trophy favorite entering the 2026 season. Despite anger from Duke fans on social media, Mensah said he’s grateful for his time spent in Durham.
“What do I want to say to Duke fans? I’ll probably just leave that alone,” he said. “To be honest, they’re pretty hostile towards me. I’m obviously grateful for all the support I’ve received during the season. Duke’s a special place. I’ve got nothing but good things to say about that place. Changed my life in the best way possible. Grateful.
“Winning a championship is a special thing, and a blessing to be able to enjoy that with my teammates. And I definitely am going to miss them, for sure.”
Winning the ACC championship was the goal entering 2025 at Duke, which he accomplished. Mensah’s goal for 2026 at Miami is to win a national championship. The Hurricanes marched through the College Football Playoff this season, making their first national title game appearance since 2002.
The quarterback has his sights set on winning Miami’s first national title since 2001. The Hurricanes have assembled plenty of talent around Mensah, too. The quarterback is bringing his leading wide receiver, Cooper Barkate, with him from Duke. Leading rusher Mark Fletcher returns, along with the rest of the rushing production.
Standout freshman Malachi Toney will be back for his sophomore season. Miami worked to add other talent to the receiver room in the portal, too, in West Virginia’s Cam Vaughn and South Carolina’s Vandrevius Jacobs.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been in an offense that’s going to be as talented as this one,” Mensah said. “The opportunities are endless, the sky’s the limit. I really just can’t wait to get to work with these boys, because it’d be a waste not to do something special with all the talent that we have.
“… I’m extremely confident. If you take a look at the pieces we have on both sides of the football, I think we’ve got a lot of talent. It’s going to be a super exciting team to watch, but we’re just trying to take it one step at a time.”
Once Mensah was formally entered into the transfer portal last week, he could begin having open dialogue with Miami. He visited the Hurricanes earlier this week following the settlement agreement, meeting with Cristobal and Dawson.
The Duke transfer said he has quickly formed a relationship with Cristobal. The two have shared goals on the field, but have similar values away from the field, Mensah said.
“Talking to coach Cristobal, just the fact that they really wanted me there,” he said. “I’ve told this story many times. Not a lot of teams, especially out of high school, were interested in me. Having that feeling, especially from a coach like coach Cristobal, is a special feeling.
“Me and him relate in a lot of ways off the field. The biggest thing is our faith in God. You see him talk about it all the time. When he’s getting interviewed, he gives all the glory to Him. That’s something that I admire, and I aspire to be like that one day.”
During his official visit, he also spent time with Dawson to understand what the Miami offense would look like with Mensah in 2026. In the last two seasons, the offensive coordinator developed Cam Ward into the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft and brought Carson Beck back from surgery to have the Hurricanes in the national title game.
In their conversations on schematics, Mensah said Dawson described a mix of Ward and Beck’s games coming together for the Duke transfer.
“We talked about watching Cam [Ward] that year and how explosive he was, and the control he had in the offense,” Mensah said. “Giving him the ability to check the play at the line of scrimmage. And then, watching [Carson] Beck this year, he was more of a control the run game, going back to his time at Georgia. We’re going to mix the two, because I’ve been in both styles of offense.”
Mensah proved in 2025 that he was one of the top passers in the country — his stats backed it up. He could have done it again in 2026 at Duke. The quarterback even announced his return to the Blue Devils.
But the allure of proving himself at Miami was too hard to pass up. Proving he is worthy of being a first-round pick while building off the Hurricanes’ breakout year.
“Miami was the spot for me to take myself to that next level,” Mensah said. “Coach Dawson, what he does at the quarterback position. … I definitely wanted to be a part of that. Miami is a great spot, and they obviously made it to the national championship game. Why not go ahead and do it again next year?”
 
Good NIL
national championships
First round pick
Top 10-20 OL
Top 5 WR room
Top 5 RB room

Why wouldn't he want to come to Miami?

If we're not a semifinal playoff team, ACC champs, AND top 5 offense next year, it'll feel like a failure.

Expectations are sky high now.

11-1 regular season at worst
ACC champs
Semifinal appearance
Mensah 1st round
 
Advertisement
Miami04 said:
I think if you lined up every college qb and said we could have anyone we want, I’m not sure there’s anyone out there I take over Mensah. I personally wanted him last year and truly believe he has few if any weakness for this team.
Click to expand...

I genuinely don't know who would be a better fit for Miami with this roster.

You're not betting on upside, he's already there. You're not hoping that a G5 QB will translate to P4, he's already done that and excelled in the same conference. You're not hoping he can clean his game up, he has one of the best TD to INT ratios in college. You're not worried whether he can distribute the ball to these playmakers, he was 2nd in passing yards. And you're not worried that he won't gel with guys, he brought his top WR with him.

I just don't know, all things considered, how you could make a case for anyone else in college. And then you add in that he'll have one of the best backfields in college so he doesn't have to do it himself in the passing game. It's genuinely scary what this offense will be capable of. We've said, "my god, if we only had Cam with this defense", and we may get just that.
 
Strobe said:
As news broke that Darian Mensah was entering the transfer portal on the final day of the sport’s transfer window, rage and shock rolled in from Duke fans. The Blue Devils quarterback was gone after just one season, leaving them scrambling to find a starter for the 2026 season.
He committed to Miami earlier this week, with sources telling On3 he reset the transfer quarterback NIL market again. Mensah and Duke reached a settlement agreement to resolve a breach of his two-year, $8 million contract to transfer out of Durham.
In his first interview following his exit from Duke and the saga that followed, Mensah explained to On3 that the decision to transfer to Miami was not purely driven by cash.
“Miami is going to take me to the place I want to go, which is ultimately the NFL,” he told On3. “They’ve got NFL coaches. Coach [Shannon] Dawson, what he does with quarterbacks, his track record is pretty amazing, and it’s something I wanted to be a part of. The way coach [Mario] Cristobal protects the quarterback, he’s always going to have a solid O-line and then the weapons just all around the team and everyone that’s a part of Miami. Seemed like it was a great fit for me.
“… I want to make the NFL. I want to be a first-round draft pick. And all signs point towards Miami. Miami’s done it. If you watch what they do, they win. It’s just something I wanted to be a part of. I’ve always bet on myself, and I always will. I’ve done it once, and I’ll do it again. I want to be one of the best.”
It’s the second consecutive offseason he hit the portal. Mensah transferred into Duke from Tulane a year ago. But his decision to leave Duke was high profile, coming on the final day of the portal and coming with significant contractual hurdles.
The Blue Devils were initially granted a temporary restraining order prohibiting Mensah from enrolling in a new institution. But the settlement reached between Duke and Mensah earlier this week created a pathway for him to enroll at Miami. Sources have told On3 that the quarterback paid the Blue Devils a sum as part of the agreement.
But Mensah told On3 that the most difficult part of the transfer process was his mom dealing with the social media commentary. He’s represented by Noah Reisenfeld and Adie von Gontard of Young Money APAA Sports.
“It’s been pretty stressful, especially for my mom,” he said. “I tried to just stay off social media and let my team do all the work. I think they did a phenomenal job. My mom was more stressed than anything. So glad it’s all done with and glad it worked out.”
Mensah finished the 2025 season ranked No. 2 in FBS in total passing yards with 3,973 yards, which led the ACC. He was also second in FBS in passing touchdowns. He finished with a 68% completion percentage and led Duke to its first outright ACC championship since 1962.
The 27-game starter is viewed as a Heisman Trophy favorite entering the 2026 season. Despite anger from Duke fans on social media, Mensah said he’s grateful for his time spent in Durham.
“What do I want to say to Duke fans? I’ll probably just leave that alone,” he said. “To be honest, they’re pretty hostile towards me. I’m obviously grateful for all the support I’ve received during the season. Duke’s a special place. I’ve got nothing but good things to say about that place. Changed my life in the best way possible. Grateful.
“Winning a championship is a special thing, and a blessing to be able to enjoy that with my teammates. And I definitely am going to miss them, for sure.”
Winning the ACC championship was the goal entering 2025 at Duke, which he accomplished. Mensah’s goal for 2026 at Miami is to win a national championship. The Hurricanes marched through the College Football Playoff this season, making their first national title game appearance since 2002.
The quarterback has his sights set on winning Miami’s first national title since 2001. The Hurricanes have assembled plenty of talent around Mensah, too. The quarterback is bringing his leading wide receiver, Cooper Barkate, with him from Duke. Leading rusher Mark Fletcher returns, along with the rest of the rushing production.
Standout freshman Malachi Toney will be back for his sophomore season. Miami worked to add other talent to the receiver room in the portal, too, in West Virginia’s Cam Vaughn and South Carolina’s Vandrevius Jacobs.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been in an offense that’s going to be as talented as this one,” Mensah said. “The opportunities are endless, the sky’s the limit. I really just can’t wait to get to work with these boys, because it’d be a waste not to do something special with all the talent that we have.
“… I’m extremely confident. If you take a look at the pieces we have on both sides of the football, I think we’ve got a lot of talent. It’s going to be a super exciting team to watch, but we’re just trying to take it one step at a time.”
Once Mensah was formally entered into the transfer portal last week, he could begin having open dialogue with Miami. He visited the Hurricanes earlier this week following the settlement agreement, meeting with Cristobal and Dawson.
The Duke transfer said he has quickly formed a relationship with Cristobal. The two have shared goals on the field, but have similar values away from the field, Mensah said.
“Talking to coach Cristobal, just the fact that they really wanted me there,” he said. “I’ve told this story many times. Not a lot of teams, especially out of high school, were interested in me. Having that feeling, especially from a coach like coach Cristobal, is a special feeling.
“Me and him relate in a lot of ways off the field. The biggest thing is our faith in God. You see him talk about it all the time. When he’s getting interviewed, he gives all the glory to Him. That’s something that I admire, and I aspire to be like that one day.”
During his official visit, he also spent time with Dawson to understand what the Miami offense would look like with Mensah in 2026. In the last two seasons, the offensive coordinator developed Cam Ward into the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft and brought Carson Beck back from surgery to have the Hurricanes in the national title game.
In their conversations on schematics, Mensah said Dawson described a mix of Ward and Beck’s games coming together for the Duke transfer.
“We talked about watching Cam [Ward] that year and how explosive he was, and the control he had in the offense,” Mensah said. “Giving him the ability to check the play at the line of scrimmage. And then, watching [Carson] Beck this year, he was more of a control the run game, going back to his time at Georgia. We’re going to mix the two, because I’ve been in both styles of offense.”
Mensah proved in 2025 that he was one of the top passers in the country — his stats backed it up. He could have done it again in 2026 at Duke. The quarterback even announced his return to the Blue Devils.
But the allure of proving himself at Miami was too hard to pass up. Proving he is worthy of being a first-round pick while building off the Hurricanes’ breakout year.
“Miami was the spot for me to take myself to that next level,” Mensah said. “Coach Dawson, what he does at the quarterback position. … I definitely wanted to be a part of that. Miami is a great spot, and they obviously made it to the national championship game. Why not go ahead and do it again next year?”
Click to expand...

1769793764970.gif
 
RozayCane said:
Not including the last 2 years.. but over the last 20 years didn’t think I would ever see a top QB speak so highly of our offense and team.

Amazing how much the image and reputation has changed over just over 2-3 years.

I think we’re in for another special year.
Click to expand...
Commitment to top Oline play, Spread foundational platform, That one QB who believes in it, Proof of Concept, QB success turns to Destination position, proven championship aspiration possibilities, :u5pyxda:
 
Seeing that quote from Mensah, I don’t see a reason to ever get stressed about QB HS recruiting.

We’re gonna get the top guy in the portal (or not lmao) here on out.

When Mensah goes at the top of the draft it’s a wrap
 
Advertisement
Problem2 said:
Seeing that quote from Mensah, I don’t see a reason to ever get stressed about QB HS recruiting.

We’re gonna get the top guy in the portal (or not lmao) here on out.

When Mensah goes at the top of the draft it’s a wrap
Click to expand...
Coleman may have somehting to say about that next year (or in 2).
 
Back
Top