Duke is off to a 2-0 start to the season. Better than that, the two wins came against teams it lost to last season when Darian Mensah was the quarterback of the Blue Devils. After an offseason hearing about how they couldn't possibly measure up with Mensah in Coral Gables, it's been a cathartic beginning to 2026.
But it's difficult to watch Mensah's torrid start to the season with the Hurricanes and not wonder "what if?" What if he had stayed at Duke? How good could this team be? That's no disrespect to Walker Eget, who played an outstanding game last week in Champaign to lead the Blue Devils to a win over Illinois.
But Mensah has been the best player in college football through three games. His latest performance was nearly perfect. He completed his first 24 passes in Friday night's win over Wake Forest, finishing just two shy of the single-game record for consecutive completions to begin a game, set by ECU's Dominique Davis against Navy back in 2011.
He finished 30-of-34 for 220 yards and three touchdowns as Miami beat Wake Forest on the road, 33-20.
Through three games, Mensah is No. 2 in the country in QBR at 94.2. He's thrown for 873 yards and 11 touchdowns without an interception. He's a healthy favorite in the Heisman Trophy race right now, and Miami is a healthy favorite to capture the program's first ACC Championship.
Duke, despite being the defending champions and starting 2-0, currently has the 7th-best odds on FanDuel, behind even Clemson, which has looked like a shell of itself. The Blue Devils never get the respect they may deserve. That probably would have been different with Mensah playing at this level.
Duke has moved on without Darian Mensah, but it's hard not to wonder 'what if?'
Duke has moved on. Manny Diaz has done excellent work in establishing a new identity for this team. It's a run-first offense led by an absolute superstar at RB, Nate Sheppard. If Eget can provide the stability we saw last week against Illinois, this team has the chance to be really good. That's especially true with how improved the Blue Devils look defensively after two weeks.
But replace a solid QB in Eget with a guy who looks like the potential No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft, and we're talking about a legitimate College Football Playoff team in Durham.
Instead, Duke has a good team. How good it is will be determined in the coming weeks. It's clear that the national media is still skeptical. That skepticism wouldn't exist with Mensah still piloting the ship.
Instead, Duke fans are forced to watch him play at a higher level than any player in the country, wearing someone else's uniform. The sting has been lessened with Duke's start to the season, but the Blue Devils will have to keep winning to stave off the demons of Mensah's exit.
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