Locked On ACC - Daily College Football & Basketball Podcast - WAR: Duke Blue Devils must FIGHT BACK to keep Darian Mensah away from Miami Hurricanes

Episode Date: January 17, 2026

Duke Blue Devils face a stunning quarterback shakeup as star Darian Mensah moves to enter the transfer portal, with Miami Hurricanes aggressively in pursuit—will Duke fight to keep their game-changing leader or risk fading into ACC irrelevance next season?Jackson Holzer analyzes Darian Mensah’s contractual saga, explosive transfer drama, and the broader impact of NIL deals and ACC rivalries. Then, attention shifts to the National Championship: Miami Hurricanes look to upset the undefeated Indiana Hoosiers, led by Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza, while Carson Beck must avoid turnovers and capitalize on Miami’s offensive strengths. Key topics include Miami’s defensive strategy against Indiana’s powerful rushing attack, playoff narratives, and whether "the U" is truly back.Can Duke hold onto Mensah, and can Miami topple Indiana’s unstoppable season? This episode delivers insights into college football’s boldest moves and biggest showdowns. Everydayer Club  If you never miss an episode, it’s time to make it official. Join the Locked On Everydayer Club and get ad-free audio, access to our members-only Discord, and more — all built for our most loyal fans. Click here to learn more and join your team’s community: https://lockedonpodcasts.com/everydayerclub   Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!GametimeToday's episode is brought to you by Gametime. Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONCOLLEGE for $20 off your first purchase. Terms and conditions apply.WayfairGet last-minute hosting essentials, gifts for all your loved ones, and decor to celebrate the holidays for WAY less.Head to https://Wayfair.com right now to shop all things home. Wayfair. Every style. Every home.  FanDuelToday's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. Football season is around the corner, visit the FanDuel App today and start planning your futures bets now.FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Dary and Mensa may want to enter the transfer portal, but Duke, they must fight back. You are Locked-on ACC, your daily podcast on the Atlantic Coast Conference. Part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, your team every day. Hello, everyone, and welcome in a locked-on ACC. I'm Jackson-Holzer, host of Locked-on-Sircuse. Thank you so much for making Locked-on-ACC, your first listen of every single day here on the Locked-on-Locked-on. on a podcast network where it's your team every day. And of course, we're always free and available wherever you get your podcast on the number

one sports podcasting network. On today's show, I will give you my thoughts on the national championship, Miami and Indiana on Monday night and who ultimately will prevail in that matchup. But first and foremost, right before I was actually going to hit the record button, we learn that on the eve of the transfer portal closing to all new entries that Duke's star quarterback, Dary and Mensa, plans on entering the transfer portal. Let's break it down. But before we do so, this episode is brought to you by Fandul.

The college football playoff is here. And Fandall is the best place to get into the action all playoff long. So visit Fandle.com to get your college football playoff profit boosts every game day. The Duke Blue Devils, star quarterback, Darius, per multiple reports, he wants to leave. And the team that is most likely and definitely not tampering with him by letter of the law is Miami.

Duke may not ultimately prevail, but they have to fight back. You can't let this happen to you, not without trying to stand up for yourself. Now, context matters. Let's break this down from the very beginning. A year ago, Derry Mensa was transferring from Tulane. He goes to Duke, and we learn that Duke gives him a two-year deal worth eight. million dollars, which at the time made Dary and Mentsa one of, if not the highest paid quarterback in all the college football. And what was shocking about it was that it was the Duke

Blue Devils of all teams that were ponying up the cash to get what they thought was an elite quarterback. And turns out he is an elite quarterback because last year Dary Mentsa over at Duke, ACC champion Duke, by the way, was second team all conference. He had 34 touchdowns to six interceptions, had a great completion percentage, and he threw for nearly 4,000 yards. If he wanted to, he could have gone to the NFL this year. I don't know if he would have been a first round pick, probably not. But he certainly would have been drafted,

especially with all the NFL teams that need quarterbacks. They would probably take a shot on Darienza to see what he's but he decided to return to school and return to the Duke Wu Devils. But now on the eve of the transfer portal closing to all new entries at the very last second, he wants out. Why would he want out? Isn't it obvious? It's the money.

We don't know for sure. It's been speculated about online what might. or another school for that matter is throwing out there for Darien Mensa. But I can assure you this, it is much more than what he is probably going to get at Duke if he were to play for them next season. Because if it's not, then there's no reason for him to enter the transfer portal. Absolutely not. Now I want to be clear here.

I'm not blaming Miami. Why blame Miami? They need a quarterback. They know that the NCAA is a worthless organization that will do absolutely. nothing. They know that tampering, I mean, that's not, they're not getting a tampering charge. Let's just stop it right there because I think tampering by letter of the law is, is a coach, having contact directly with the player. There's so many middlemen involved in these type of things that they're not going to get taught. And even if they did, why would it matter?

Who would care? The NCAA is not going to do anything about it. They need a quarterback. And I'm not blaming Dary and Mensa because let me give you an. analogy. You're at your job. And a competing company says, well, we know you're under contract, but we're going to double your salary and you get to do the same thing. And you'll also be in a better situation too. Because if Darien Mentsa were to go to Miami next year, which is what is being floated out there and there's, whether there's fire, the Miami hurricanes are no doubt the favorite in the ACC and would be amongst the favorites to win the national championship in 2026, and they might do so on Monday night as well. So maybe potentially two-time

defending national champions. That's what's on the table. And you get to live in South Florida and you get more money. I'm not blaming Dary Menson. If anything, blame the system for what is going on right now and how ridiculous and absurd it is. But now it goes back. But now it goes back to my overall point. You are the Duke Blue Devils. What is your mindset here? Do you allow your star quarterback to leave? Well, Daria Mensa doesn't want to be at Duke. He wants us to submit the paperwork by midnight, which is, I think, the deadline for the portal. Let's just do it. Who cares? He doesn't want to be here. We'll go to someone else. I can assure you that that next man up at Duke is nowhere near as good as.

Derry Mentsa, and I can assure you that Duke would probably be a pretty irrelevant team in the ACCC next year. And I'm saying this I get as a Syracuse fan. Syracuse will not be good next year. It's okay. So I'm not just doing this to put down Duke, but you get the point. If Duke doesn't have Dary Mensa next year, it's hard to see how they would be relevant. So you can't do it either way. What you have to do is you have to fight back. You have to stand up for yourself. you can't let a team in the ACC, especially in the ACC, just openly tamper and steal your quarterback and just throw a bunch of cash at them. Because you have a signed contract with Dary and Mensa.

What does that sign contract entail? Well, according to On3's Pete Nacos, Quote, Mentsa's contract calls for Duke to have his exclusive NIL rights, and only the Blue Devils have the ability to cancel that. Sources have also told on three that there is no buyout. So if you're the Duke Blue Devils, you cannot file the paperwork and let him go to the transit portal. You must fight this.

I'm not a legal expert. I don't know. if Duke will ultimately prevail if they decide to get into a legal battle with the Miami Hurricanes, which they should do, they may end up getting an illegal battle and they may end up settling. And Darien Mentson does play for Miami. They mend up, maybe they lose it altogether. Earlier this off season, we did see a similar situation. It was in the Big Ten.

It was with Washington and their quarterback to Mon Williams and LSU was trying to go after him. but Washington said, uh-uh, Mr. DeMond Williams, you have a contract. It's signed. It's sealed. You ain't leaving. I don't know if it's apples to apples or if it's more apples to oranges. There's definitely some sort of similarity there, but the languages with the conference and these contracts are all different. That's why it's hard for me to sit here and tell you, well, Duke fights this. They will ultimately prevail and Dary and Mentson will be their quarterback in 2026. But I'll tell you this. Duke's mindset, has to be this. Darien Mensa will be a Duke Blue Devil in 26. And if he does not want to play for the Duke Blue Devils, he will not play a snap of college football in 26. That needs to be their mindset. Comment your thoughts in the comments section below on the absurdity of what is happening

in college football and college sports for that matter. Very rarely do I really get animated over it. But this situation kind of ticked me off. So I apologize if I sound that way. But I would like if the Duke Blue Devils could stand up for themselves and tell every school, including Miami, to you know what, you're not taking our quarterback. It's not happening. Now coming up, we'll go over the national championship game, a little bit more cheerful. This season that is still occurring. There is one more game left. You got Indiana and Miami.

We'll break it down next on Locked on ACC. The college football playoff is here, and Fandall is giving all customers, even more ways to get in on the action every single game day of the playoffs. Because right now, every college football playoff game day, Fandall users get a profit boost waiting for them in the app. And here's what I love about it.

You get to use the profit boost on the bets you already feel good about. Or build a parlay around the players and moments you think decide the game. game. Then you apply the profit boost and go after even bigger winnings. And when you win, Fandall pays out instantly, which is perfect for playoff football. Fandall is the best place to get into the action on playoff long. So visit vandal.com to get your college football playoff profit boosts every game day. Let's move on to something brighter. And it's the 2025 season that is still occurring. There is one more game left. Monday night, 7.30 p.m. Eastern, the Miami Hurricanes representing the ACC are in the national championship, taking on the Indiana Hoosiers

in Hard Rock Stadium. So it will be a home national title for Miami. Darian Mensa will not be the quarterback for Miami. It will be Carson Beck. Now at the time of this recording, which is late Friday evening, Fandul has Miami as an eight and a half point underdog. So they're giving Miami a puncher's chance, but Indiana is a considerable favorite to win the national championship. Can the hurricanes pull off an upset, which I would admit to you all, ladies and gentlemen, I would be pretty surprised if they are able to provide

or able to pull off this upset. Let's start off with the Miami defense, because that's, I think, is the key to all of this. It is that Miami defense. They're bread and butter. Their defensive front led by Akeem Messador and Rubin Bain. Both guys are so good. They're probably going to be drafted by the New York Jets in late April.

I'm so sorry to those guys, but it's probably what it's going to happen. You're just going to have to accept it. But obviously, there's a challenge on the other side. Indiana has the Heisman trophy winner. His name is Fernando Mendoza. be the number one pick in the 2026 NFL draft to the Las Vegas Raiders. In this college football playoff, Fernando Mendoza has more touchdown passes, which is

eight to incompletions, which is five. That's challenge number one. Number two is the running game. What if I told you that an offense that features the Heisman Trophy winner at quarterback, that the passing game is not the true strength. I know. It kind of sounds ridiculous, right? Kind of sounds backwards.

How could that be possible? I mean, when Joe Burrow won the Heisman at LSU, what was their strength? It was obviously his ability to throw the ball a million yards and getting Justin Jefferson and Jamar Chase and all the guys that they had on that offense. They did have a strong running game too, led by Clyde Edwards-Alair, but that's not the point.

But Indiana's Russia. attack is their true strength. Their passing game with Mendoza in the nation was 52nd this year. Their rushing attack, on the other hand, it ranks 12th in the nation. They average nearly 220 yards a game on the ground and over 5.3 yards a carry. They're going to use a trio of running backs, Roman Himby, Kalin Black, Kobe Martin to keep everybody fresh. They want to establish the run. Fernando Mendoza throw 20 to 25 times. He'll be hyper efficient and they'll carve you up. What has Indiana done in the college football playoff while Miami has been on the

Cinderella journey all the way here. We all know their story. Indiana has just been bludgeoning teams. They made Alabama look like they didn't deserve to be there and they made Oregon look so bad that their quarterback said, you know what, I actually need more time in college because if I can't handle the Indiana defense, then I can't handle an NFL defense. So how does Miami stop this machine on defense? Number one, it's going to sound super counterintuitive, but I think you have to make Fernando Mendoza work. And by that, I mean,

make him throw the ball much more often than he is used to doing. Fernando Mendoza, his season high in pass attempts this season. 31. That's it. Again, they want to run the ball and have their quarterback throw 20 to 25 times and him be hyper efficient. That's what they want to do.

We have not yet seen what Fernando Mendoza with Indiana would be like if he is forced to have to throw the ball 40 times. Is it possible that Fernando Mendoza can throw it 40 times? He completes 35 passes and throws six touchdowns. Of course it's possible. And to that you say, you know what?

We tip our cap. There is absolutely positively no way to beat this Indiana team. That's what you do if you're Miami. That is as simple as it gets. If he goes 35 and 40 and six touchdowns, seven touchdowns, whatever, that's it. Nobody was going to beat him. You tip your cap and you say, that guy is an all-time great college football player, all-time great season.

He's the number one pick in the draft for a reason. But if you can stop Indiana's rushing attack and Miami, to their credit, they can stop the run. Now you make Fernando Mendoza have to do something that he hasn't done all-season for Indiana so far. So it sounds crazy. It sounds stupid, but maybe their best strategy, and I said this on ACC squad, is having the Heisman trophy winner at quarterback throw even more than what he usually throws.

Back to the Joe Burrow reference. Imagine if we said, hey, Joe Burrow at LSU, the game plan should be to make him throw the ball even more. But obviously there's a difference because Indiana's strength is their rushing attack. And number two, it's pressure. You got to get pressure on Fernando Mendoza. It kind of goes without saying. Name me a quarterback that is really good when his tookus is on the turf.

The answer is zero. How many quarterbacks like having a 300-pound man in their face as they're throwing? Zero. So Akeem Mesidor and Rubin Bain, this is it. Indiana has a great offensive line. They keep Fernando Mendoza clean, but you have to generate a pass rush. If you allow him to sit in that pocket and throw BBs, they're done. Oh, he'll throw the ball 40 times, but he will complete 35 of them. And you will lose. So make him work. And when you make him work, you have to pressure him. Now the Cain's offense, I'm not going to bore you to death about Indiana and how good their defenses. We know how good Indiana's defense is. Time of possession.

Ole Miss actually was able to move the ball on Miami's defense in the college football semi-final. They gave, they had over or nearly 400 yards of total offense. They stored 27 points. but here was the key for Miami. They had the ball for over 41 of the 60 minutes. Time of possession. The best way to stop a great offense is simply not allowing that great offense to be on the field. Sure, it would be great if Miami's able to hit chunk play here, chunk play there, long 70-yard touchdown.

That would be great and everyone would go crazy. And of course, I'm not saying, hey, you know, if you're going for a 70-yard touchdown, maybe you should take a knee at the one-yard line to burn some more clock. No. But what Miami needs is long, methodical drives on offense. Even if they don't necessarily result in touchdowns, we have seen Indiana at times this season play close games. I know it's hard to believe because of this playoff, but they have played close games. They nearly lost to Penn State.

and in the Big Ten championship game, which is more recent than that Penn State game, I think Indiana is a much better version of what they were then. They've gotten better over the course of the season, so is Miami. But follow with me here for a moment. Indiana beat Ohio State 1310 in the Big Ten title game. 1310. It's not like they're, I know they haven't lost, but it is not like they are unbeatable,

especially because Miami actually beat Ohio State. So if you're Miami, if you are able to control the clock, control the ball on offense, even if you're not getting touchdowns and you're just getting field goals. Nine play, 70-yard drive that takes seven minutes off the clock. That is your friend. And number two, it again goes without saying no turnovers. Do not be Oregon and start the game against Indiana with a pick six.

That is not recommended. If you are the Miami Hurricanes, he want to win this game. Carson Beck, to his credit, he has one interception during this college football playoff that was against Ole Miss. That's all he has. No turnovers against Texas A&M. None against a really stout Ohio State defense. I was surprised.

He had one against Ole Miss. That's it. Can't have any against this Indiana team. In the two losses that Miami has had this season, season. Carson Beck has six interceptions. He had four against Louisville. He had two against SMU. Obviously, it goes without saying, again, when he doesn't turn the ball over, Miami has not lost. Malachi Tony is his friend. Give him the ball. Try to get him out in space. Mark Fletcher, he leads the rushing attack. They also have a stable of running backs behind him, too, just like Indiana.

but they cannot have turnovers. You don't need Fernando Mendoza and that rushing attack to get any more extra possessions. Don't need it. I don't care how great your defense is. Not recommended. So can Miami win this game? It's not going to be easy,

but I would give them a puncher's chance to do it. Now coming up, I will give you my official prediction of this game. So stick with us here on locked on ACC. Is the U officially back or is Indiana just going to steamroll their way to an undefeated national championship season? Miami kind of feels like the team of destiny. Miami lost that second game to SMU, myself and many others around the country, including a lot of you Miami Hurricanes fans.

It's okay to admit it. Counted them out. They're done. They're dead. Yeah, they may run the table, but they're not going to make the college football playoff. And they just made it. On that final selection Sunday, they just made it.

Wow. The committee did the right thing, I may add. Not to rehash that whole. argument, but it's complicated. Once you had Miami and Notre Dame lined up together, Miami deserved to be over Notre Dame. I don't know if BYU should have been punished, but again, we're not going to relitigate it here. Miami sneaks in. And there are minor underdogs at Texas A&M, and they beat Texas A&M.

I thought they were going to beat Texas A&M. Kenton. When we did the show together, he thought they were going to beat. Texas A&M. Then they're playing big bad Ohio State, defending national champions. There's no way Miami is going to beat Ohio State. Uh-uh, not happening. They controlled that game from start to finish. And then, of course, the instant classic Ole Miss, fourth quarter, game on the line.

What does Carson Beck have in store? Can he lead Miami to a win? And lo and behold, the man. actually did it. He proved everyone wrong on that drive. He can lead to Miami Hurricanes. Look at him go as the Red Sea parted and he got it in the end zone. It's a great story. It really is. What's Indiana story? Well, it's as if they woke up one morning and said, we're going to be one of the greatest teams in college football playoff history. It's not like they were projected to be this good. I think they were 20th in the AP poll. They started the season

against Old Dominion. The first play against them was a touchdown. Colton Joseph. They won that game. Not by much. It wasn't convincing. They have this Fernando Menbosa kid they got from Cal. They're coming off a year where they were 11 and 2. They made the college football playoff, but nobody really felt like they belong. And people were. were saying that Indiana should never be allowed in the college football playoff again. They had an easy schedule and that's that. Well, actually, they're one of the greatest teams ever. Whether or not they're able to complete that is another thing.

But Indiana's point differential is plus 473 this season. That is the highest of the college football playoff era. They hire Kurt Signetti before the 2024 season. And all he has done is cemented. himself, in my opinion, as the best coach in all college football. There is no argument. Even if he does lose this game, he's the best coach in college football. Because prior to Kurt Signetti, Indiana had never had a 10-win season.

Never. Well, in 2024, they go 11 and 2 and go to the college football play. off stunning everyone, even if they had a paper soft schedule, which I think is just hindsight 20-20 because nobody thought Indiana was going to be that good to begin with. And then now they're 15 to know. Their quarterback they got from Cal, ACCC school, Fernando Mendoza is all of a sudden, I think he's a different type of version of what Joe Burrow was when he was at LSU. His first year at LSU, when he transferred from Ohio State, he wasn't great.

He didn't wow you. You weren't expecting big things from him in his second season with LSU. Maybe you were expecting improvement. And Joe Burrow ends up having one of the great seasons ever of college football. Now, I wouldn't say that Mendoza has had the same year. He hasn't. But it's that type of leap where nobody really saw it coming. And he all of a sudden just, he popped.

He burst onto the scene. So you got one team who feels like a team of destiny. And you got another team who just woke up and decided that they were going to be one of the premier teams in all of college football. And they can cement themselves with a victory on Monday night. So what's going to happen? I really do want to pick Miami to win. I think it would be a great story if Miami won. And the thing with the team of destiny is I said this on ACC squad is that the team of destiny.

will always be counted out heading into the final game. That's how it's supposed to work. I mean, the 07 Giants, nobody thought that they were going to beat the undefeated New England Patriots. Absolutely nobody. Nobody gave them a chance. And that was the NFL where the margin for error is a lot tighter than it is in college. So I'm not going to sit here and say Miami can't win this game. They absolutely can.

There is a path to beat this Indiana team. but I have to pick Indiana. And I'm going to go with Indiana 2713. They made Alabama look like. They didn't want to be on the field. They made Oregon's quarterback decide to go back to school. Indiana is a phenomenal team. So is Miami.

But this is not the year that you will be back. Maybe it'll be in 2026 when Daria Mentsa is their quarterback. But for this game, Indiana, they have no weaknesses. They can beat this Miami team in a ton of different ways. Whereas Miami, I think they need to be pretty much perfect in order to win this game. So I'm going Indiana to win 2713. Now, of course, Miami fans, I already know what you're going to say. You're going to say that I'm nuts, I'm stupid, and that Miami is going to win.

And you're all going to laugh at me next Friday. That's okay. I can take it. But for my non-M Miami fans tuning in, what do you think is going to happen? Comment your thoughts in the comment section below. The next episode here on Locked-on ACCC will be with Alex Dono and Kenton Gibbs. They actually went live earlier when they were going over the Dary and Mensa coverage. I will be back next Friday for another solo edition of Locked-on ACC. Folks, thank you all so much for watching. Thank you all so much for listening.

If you like this podcast, be sure to hit that like button. If you really enjoy the podcast, be sure to hit subscribe. Tell all your friends about locked on ACC, and I will see you all again soon.