The transfer portal and NIL came in as a boon for players, but for Darian Mensah, it’s turning into a legal problem. After a remarkable 9-5 season, the Duke Blue Devils lost their QB to the portal. But what seemed like a normal portal move became an ongoing lawsuit between the player and the program.

Duke University filed a 44-page lawsuit against former quarterback Darian Mensah after he entered the transfer portal despite signing a two-year, $8 million contract. The university states that Mensah was “shopping around” and talking to other schools, which was clearly prohibited in his contract. They also claim that he had leaked the private financial details of the deal.

The university is trying its best to block his chance of transferring to another school. They tried to get a restraining order against the quarterback, but the judge denied the plea. Regardless, Mensah is restricted from playing for the other team until their February 2nd, 2026, hearing.

Also, Duke can now access Mensah’s communication, including texts and emails, to investigate whether another school is in the mix and influenced his decision to enter the portal. This comes in through the lawsuit, which gives Duke the power to get all the confidential information.

Now, Miami’s name has popped up in the midst of all the legal drama. Darian Mensah has been linked to Miami since announcing his transfer move. This is the second case of portal chaos after Washington quarterback Demond Williams Jr. entered the portal but later came back because of his contract and legal fears.

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But here’s the interesting thing. Duke lawyers didn’t put up Miami’s name, but claimed that Mensah entered the portal to join Miami, rather than that they created two timelines, as per Duke alum David McKenzie’s reports on X. One where Duke relies on their own records showing exactly when Mensah makes his move. He called Coach Manny Diaz at 3:56 PM, emailed compliance at 4:14 PM, and posted his farewell message at 4:51 PM.

Then comes in the external factor. Before Darian Mensah’s move, Barstool Sports’ Liam Blutman shared a tweet, where details of Miami offering Mensah roughly a $10 million contract, country club housing, and Adidas campaign news came out. But it cannot be verified, and that’s why Duke attorneys didn’t claim it as evidence but attached it to their case to show the court the timings. This way, they didn’t come directly to Miami.

But it makes a striking connection in Mensah’s case, as just two hours before the news came out with specific figures, he called Diaz and entered the portal. Now, the entire lawsuit depends on the chats and communication between Mensah and Miami or any other team that might have forced him to enter the portal.

Miami does need an experienced quarterback after Carson Beck’s move to the NFL, but if this case turns in Duke’s favor, they might face tampering issues. Even Duke’s urge to keep their QB close makes sense, as Darian Mensah led them to their first conference championship since 1962 and also got second-team All-ACC honors in 2025.

However, if Miami is really involved in it, this wouldn’t be their first time.

Miami’s controversial recruiting history

Miami already faces a lot of controversial lawsuits on “tampering” grounds. Back in June, Wisconsin filed a lawsuit against the Hurricanes and accused them of tampering and illegally inducing CB Xavier Lucas from the team, who signed a two-year contract with the team before transferring to Miami.

And here we are again, watching Darian Mensah face the same legal trouble, and Miami’s name is right in the mix. Miami already had a history of controversy. One of their major NCAA battles was when booster Nevin Shapiro was convicted in court for running a Ponzi scheme at Miami and providing players with improper benefits like cash gifts and travel bags between 2002 and 2010. Though it wasn’t tampering, it involved improper recruiting practices.

Their recruiting behavior has drawn a lot of backlash over time. Now, if Mensah’s case gains any momentum, that might take another toll on them.