Darian Mensah ready to lead Miami Hurricanes: ‘This is my offense’
Darian Mensah has gone through the whirlwind of transferring to the Miami Hurricanes. He has gone through spring practice. He has learned the playbook. He has met his teammates.
Now, he’s ready lead the Hurricanes.
“This is my team,” Mensah said in a 1-on-1 with the Miami Herald on Wednesday at the Atlantic Coast Conference’s Football Kickoff in Charlotte. “This is my offense. I’m excited to go compete with the guys.”
He says this not in a cocky tone, but one of confidence. Mensah understands the expectations that will be on him, just like Carson Beck before him and Cam Ward before that. The Hurricanes once again sprung to get a veteran quarterback out of the transfer portal — this time an 11th-hour acquisition of Mensah from Duke — as they look to maximize the talent of a team that fell just short in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game to Indiana and has aspirations of competing for a title once again.
“Can’t wait,” Mensah said.
Neither can the Hurricanes, considering Mensah’s pedigree.
Mensah completed 66.8% of his passes for 3,973 yards and 34 touchdowns with six interceptions last season at Duke, which won the ACC 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% of his passes for 2,723 yards with 22 touchdowns and six interceptions.
“Everything stands out about Darian,” Hurricanes coach Mario Cristobal said, “and I feel that because of what our roster was that it was best for the team to go the portal route for a quarterback this year. ... With the supporting cast, a player of that caliber when he enters the portal, it’s like, ‘Yeah, let’s give this our best shot’ and we did. It worked out for us. He’s been awesome in every aspect. I feel like a broken record at this time every year when I talk about our quarterbacks. They’re all extremely accurate. They can make every throw. Great pocket presence. This guy’s ability to extend plays is really, really special. His willingness just to invest time and get better is off the charts, and that’s what gains the trust of your teammates when you’re in there all the time doing the things necessary to be a great player and to run the system to the optimal levels.”
Added senior running back Mark Fletcher Jr.: “He always wants to learn, and he always wants to teach. After a rep, he’s showing how we could do it better. Even if we scored a touchdown, he’s trying to see how we could have done it better. He’s just always, always trying to just get better, and that’s just gonna make him such a great fit.”
Mensah said the relationships he built with his teammates and with the coaching staff — Cristobal and offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson in particular — has helped simplify the transition. He feels comfortable with a playbook that includes “running stuff that I love.”
“Very open communication with both of them,” Mensah said. “Coach Cristobal over there is a leader of men, and I think that he kind of inspires my leadership style. I aspire to be more like him when addressing the offense. As far as coach Dawson goes, he is he’s one of the more in-tune minds with football. He just knows ball, and I think that having him as my OC will really turn me up this season.”
And Mensah knows it won’t just be him. There’s a team surrounding him that will help him succeed. There’s a stacked running back room and receiver core. There’s a stacked defense returning most of its talent.
And perhaps most importantly, there are veterans to share the leadership load. Everyone understands the task at hand.
“Everyone will be holding everyone accountable,” Mensah said. “I think when you have that without any personal feelings into it, that’s when you achieve.”
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