Darian Mensah's transfer to Duke a massive win for Blue Devils, big blow to Tulane

The Duke Blue Devils have scored one of this season's big transfer prizes in quarterback Darian Mensah, according to Manny Navarro and Sam Khan Jr. of The Athletic.

Mensah was one of the top quarterback prospects to enter the portal this year for a variety of reasons. He starred for Tulane this season as a true freshman, racking up 2,723 yards and 22 touchdowns while completing 65.9 percent of his passes and throwing just six interceptions for the Green Wave. He showed stellar arm strength and accuracy all season, and an impressive ability to fit the ball into tight windows.

On top of that, he has a full three years of eligibility left, and figures to play for at least two of those seasons. One SEC scouting director called him "a future NFL quarterback," per The Athletic.

In other words, Duke just found the perfect signal caller to build around under second-year head coach Manny Diaz. Maalik Murphy struggled to find any kind of rhythm in the passing game, but Mensah figures to stabilize the offense once he learns the new system. He's the kind of player Duke would never have dreamed of landing in years past, and a sign that the Blue Devils under Diaz are going to be a threat in the ACC for as long as the coach is there.

But, for as big of a win as it is for Duke, it's an equally significant loss for the Green Wave. Mensah was a promising, talented young quarterback on a team who, until the final two weeks of the season, had a legitimate outside chance of making the playoff. They see themselves as the cream of the group of five crop, with a burgeoning NIL program and enough money to stay in contention at the top of the AAC.

And yet, they were unable to hold onto Mensah when a bigger fish came calling. Such is life in the group of five in the modern era, but Tulane was likely hoping to buck the trend and find a way to hang onto their prized quarterback.

Now, the Green Wave will need to find themselves another option in the portal, or hope that one of their remaining quarterbacks can show something approaching the potential Mensah did.

Home/CFB