What Duke football's QB room looks like after Darian Mensah's transfer

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Duke football redshirt junior quarterback Darian Mensah is entering the NCAA transfer portal.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel was first to report Mensah would be entering the portal on Friday, Jan. 16, the last day to enter the portal following its two-week open window. Mensah later confirmed the report in a social media post.

The 6-foot-3 Mensah led Duke to a 9-5 finish and the ACC championship crown during his lone season in Durham. The San Luis Obispo, California native, threw for 3,973 yards and 34 touchdowns – both single-season program records – en route to being name the ACC championship game MVP.

Mensah transferred to Duke from Tulane in December 2024, signing a reported two-year contract worth $4 million a year. Thamel reported earlier on Jan. 16 that with Mensah’s transfer, Duke still retains his exclusive NIL rights and the only way he can access revenue share money is through Duke, unless the school terminates the contract. Thamel also reported that “the ability for any school to pay him outside of revenue share would be scrutinized.”

With his portal entry, Mensah will be looking for his third school in three years. It also leaves the Duke quarterback room with three scholarship players on the roster.

Mensah is not the only loss to the Duke quarterback room from the portal, either. Henry Belin IV entered the portal, and has since announced he will be transferring to Missouri State, after four years at Duke that saw him make two starts.

While the portal closes Jan. 16, athletes have until Feb. 2 to take official visits, meaning Duke can still add another quarterback addition for 2026.

Here’s a breakdown of how the quarterback depth chart could shake out for Duke in 2026:

Duke football transfer QB Ari Patu

Patu joined the Blue Devils from the portal on Jan. 7 from North Alabama. A Folsom, California native, Patu spent the 2021-23 seasons at Stanford before transferring to North Alabama for the 2024-25 seasons. Patu threw for 517 yards and five touchdowns and ran for 133 yards and another score in 2025.

Patu by far brings the most experience in the Duke quarterback room with the departure of Mensah, playing 490 total career snaps per Pro Football Focus.

Duke football redshirt freshman QB Dan Mahan

The 6-foot-2 Burlington, North Carolina native did not see the field for Duke in 2025.

He was a three-star prospect out of Williams High School and an early enrollee in the Blue Devils’ 2025 class. Mahan threw for 2,528 yards and 33 touchdowns to go along with 988 rushing yards and nine scores during his senior season. He was tabbed as the No. 9 dual-threat quarterback in the 2025 cycle per Rivals.  

Duke football redshirt freshman QB Lawrence Gardner

The 6-foot-0 Dallas, Texas native was a part of Duke’s 2025 recruiting class. He did not see the field for Duke in 2025.

Gardner threw for 2,314 yards and 24 touchdowns while rushing for an additional 593 yards and 11 scores during his senior season at St. Mark’s School of Texas.

Duke football incoming freshman QB Terry Walker III

Walker III is an early enrollee and part of Duke’s 2026 recruiting cycle. A Fishers, Indiana native, Walker III was a three-star prospect and tabbed as the No. 36 quarterback in the class per 247Sports.

Walker III completed 95-of-200 passes for 1,480 yards with 17 touchdowns during his junior year at Lawrence Central. He opened his senior year at Hamilton Southeastern going 49-of-87 for 653 yards and three scores across four games prior to suffering a season-ending injury.

Anna Snyder covers Duke for The Fayetteville Observer as part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at asnyder@usatodayco.com or follow her @annaesnydr on X, formerly known as Twitter. 

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: How Darian Mensah transfer announcement impacts Duke football QB room

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