Darian Mensah has talent to lead Hurricanes — and trust of teammates to do it
Matt McCoy has already seen shades of how new Miami Hurricanes quarterback Darian Mensah goes about leading a team.
And he likes what he is seeing.
“He’s a funny guy, but he always makes sure we’re on the same page,” said McCoy, who is projected to be Miami’s starting right tackle. “He’s always getting us going. It’s important, and that’s what I want.”
Mensah, who transferred to Miami from Duke in late January, was striking a delicate balance over his first few months with the team.
Yes, he’s going to be one of the faces of the Hurricanes — just like Carson Beck before him and Cam Ward before him. Yes, he knows what it takes to lead a team and understands the expectations in front of him as the Hurricanes look to build on last season’s run to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game.
But no, he wasn’t just going to go out and assert his dominance to a team he was just walking into that had all this success that precedes him. Mensah understands that respect is earned, not given.
“I’m just trying to lead by example,” Mensah said. “I think if you come in and try to chirp at dudes, that may come off the wrong way, so just go out and be one of the hardest working dudes on the team so you gain your teammates’ respect through your actions and not your words.”
His actions have held up thus far. As the Hurricanes wrap up their 15-practice spring schedule, Mensah heads into the summer in a great place both with his understanding of the offense and with the relationships built with his teammates as they attempt to once again be one of college football’s top programs in 2026.
“Mensah’s great,” center Ryan Rodriguez said. “He uplifts everybody, good vibe around him. We love watching him play and when he’s doing his thing, he’s doing his thing. It’s great to watch. He’s definitely going to lead us. It’s going to be electric.”
Mensah has shown at his previous stops just how electric he can be.
He completed 66.8% of his passes for 3,973 yards and 34 touchdowns with six interceptions last season at Duke, which won the Atlantic Coast Conference title. His total passing yards led Power 4 quarterbacks last season. His passing touchdowns trailed only Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza, who is projected to be the No. 1 overall pick in this week’s NFL Draft.
Prior to his time at Duke, Mensah spent two years at Tulane where in 13 games he completed 66 percent of his passes for 2,723 yards with 22 touchdowns and six interceptions.
“He’s always calm and collected in the big moments, and really, in any game,” said Cooper Barkate, who transferred from Duke to Miami with Mensah and caught 72 catches and 1,106 receiving yards as Mensah’s go-to target last season. “That’s probably the biggest thing, and obviously, his athletic talent.”
He gave Hurricanes fans glimpses of that athletic talent on Saturday when he tossed three touchdown passes in Miami’s spring game to Barkate, Daylyn Upshaw and Cam Vaughn. He showcased a touch for the deep ball and the ability to get the ball out of his hands quickly.
“We’re pleased with the progress,” Hurricanes coach Mario Cristobal said Saturday. “We still have a long ways to go. You saw some really accurate, long, difficult, high-degree difficulty throws today that he hit, and a couple others that we have to come up with. When you throw the ball deep, and you’ve won in man coverage, if it’s on target, you’ve got to get there, and other times you’d like to have some plays back. But all in all, to have your quarterback take all of spring practice and be here for winter workouts is a tremendous advantage, I think it showed up today.”
And Mensah and the Hurricanes hope it shows up beyond Saturday.
A national championship, something the Hurricanes haven’t achieved since the 2001 season, is the goal. Mensah will play a pivotal role in making that happen.
He’s establishing himself as a go-to person for the team, just like he did at both of his previous college stops.
“Coming in, people obviously knew who he was,” Barkate said, “but showing who he was and earning the respect of his teammates … I think slowly, you’ll see more and more of his leadership. It was the same at Duke — slowly take over and kind of do what he does.”
Added Mensah: “I’ve transferred before, so it definitely helps. I know what to expect stepping into a new locker room. You don’t want to step on toes, but you do want to assert yourself as a leader. And I feel like I’ve done that so far.”
.JPG)