As a redshirt freshman at Tulane in 2024, Mensah led the Green Wave to a 9-4 record and a trip to the AAC championship game.
In 13 starts, Mensah was 189-of-287 (AAC-best 65.9 percent) for 2,723 yards (9.5 yards per attempt), 22 touchdowns and six interceptions, keeping Tulane afloat after former quarterback Michael Pratt, who helped lead the program to a 23-5 record from 2022-23, was selected by the Packers in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Mensah is ESPN’s No. 1 transfer-portal player and ranks 19th by On3.com.
He started twice against power conference opponents in 2024, going 33-of-61 (54.1 percent) for 508 yards (8.3 yards per attempt), three touchdowns and two interceptions.
Mensah threw for 342 yards in a controversial 34-27 home loss to Kansas State. While he struggled on the road against Oklahoma, Mensah still had a more productive game than Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe in a similar setting, so we’ll grade that on a curve.
Adding Mensah is significant for Duke, which lost 2024 starter Maalik Murphy to the portal.
It’s also a clear sign of how far the program has come after being arguably the worst power conference team at the turn of the century. From 2000-07, the Blue Devils went 10-82. They failed to make a bowl game from 1995-2011.
Duke has made nine bowl games in the past 13 years, but it’s still far from being an ACC powerhouse.
Before the transfer portal era, the thought of Duke landing a player with Mensah’s ability and track record would have been laughable.
Not anymore.
While it remains to be seen what will happen when this initial surge in college NIL collective funding slows, up to this point, the portal hasn’t simply made the rich richer.
It’s democratized the sport, allowing perennial afterthoughts like Duke an opportunity to compete for high-profile transfers.
It helps that Duke head coach Manny Diaz built on former coach Mike Elko’s success, going 9-3 this season.
“[Diaz] gets you going,” Mensah said, via ESPN’s Pete Thamel. “He’s legit.”
“They have a legit defensive line. He’ll take this team as far as we want to go,” Mensah added.
Just this season, SMU, Indiana, and Arizona State were among the teams that crashed the College Football Playoff. Why not Duke in 2025?
If anyone wants an example of how much the sport has changed in recent years, look no further than what’s happening in Durham.
