College sports are awesome and if anyone tells you otherwise, they are wrong.
The latest example comes in the lawsuit that Duke University has filed against quarterback Darian Mensah for entering the transfer portal on Friday afternoon, hours before it closed.
In the suit that was released on Tuesday morning, the Blue Devils are trying to block Mensah from being able to enter the portal given he signed a two-year contract with the football program last offseason and seems destined to commit to Miami.
However, Mensah’s agent and attorneys requested a new judge on the case after it was revealed that the original judge was a Duke basketball season ticket holder.
“The judge, a Duke basketball season ticket holder, and thus a booster, also recused himself from future proceedings,” Darren Heitner, Mensah’s agent said in a statement released to the press.
Despite Heitner’s comments, there is no direct correlation to a season ticket holder also being a booter for a program. However, that’s not to make his claim false in this case.
"This morning, the judge ruled from the bench, pending a written ruling, denying Duke’s request that Mensah be enjoined from entering the transfer portal,” he continued.
Heitner continued to share details on the case via social media on Tuesday.
“To be clear, there is an injunction hearing in front of a new judge, who has no known ties to Duke, scheduled for February 2,” he stated on X.
“We will seek to move that to an earlier date. In the meantime, the prior judge indicated from the bench that he will deny Duke's request that Darian Mensah be enjoined from entering into the transfer portal. But Mensah is not, for the time being, allowed to enroll at another school or play football at another school before the decision by the next judge.”
And the judge who presided over the hearing admitted to being a Duke basketball season ticket holder (a booster), which is why a new judge will preside over the forthcoming injunction hearing. In my opinion, the recusal should have occurred prior to any order.
— Darren Heitner (@heitner) January 20, 2026
All indications are that Darian Mensah will be the next starting quarterback at Miami after its loss in the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday night against Indiana.
Should he join the Hurricanes, Mensah would follow Cam Ward and Carson Beck as the signal callers in South Florida. He is coming off one of the best seasons in Duke football history that saw the Blue Devils win the ACC Championship as well as throwing for 3,973 yards and 34 touchdowns.
More fallout will surely come from this historic lawsuit as the Duke, Miami, and Darian Mensah clash about his immediate future in the sport.