Amid a legal fight in a Durham, North Carolina court, there seems to be progress in Darian Mensah’s effort to transfer out of Duke.
The Blue Devils and Mensah’s camp continue to communicate as of Sunday morning and are working to find a resolution to the issue outside of the courtroom, sources tell CBS Sports.
Nothing is done but there is some optimism a resolution could be found before the two sides are scheduled to be back in court on Jan. 29 for a preliminary injunction hearing.
There is some urgency on Mensah’s side to get things done quickly as he’s not currently allowed to enroll at another institution despite being entered into the transfer portal earlier this week.
The court in North Carolina granted Duke a temporary restraining that prevents Mensah from enrolling, playing football at and licensing his NIL to another school through at least Jan. 29.
Mensah’s camp filed an emergency motion for a reconsideration of the temporary restraining order on Jan. 23 arguing for an expedited hearing. The hearing was initially scheduled for Feb. 2 but was moved up following the request from Mensah’s camp.
Duke filed its lawsuit against Mensah on Jan. 20 after the quarterback requested to enter the transfer portal. The Blue Devils allege that Mensah broke his contract by trying to enter the portal and must stay with the program to finish the arbitration process stipulated in the contract that would resolve disputes.
Mensah announced his decision to enter the portal on Jan. 16, just hours ahead of the portal deadline for players to submit their names.
Duke asked for a temporary restraining order as part of its 44-page suit. Part of it was granted but Mensah was ultimately allowed to enter his name into the NCAA’s transfer portal database.
Mensah’s wish to enter the portal and Duke’s suit attempt to prevent him from playing for another program provides the latest example of player and school clashing over the terms of a player’s contract.
In recent weeks, Washington held firm and prevented quarterback Demond Williams from entering the portal due to the terms of his contract. Former Georgia edge Damon Wilson is currently suing the Bulldogs over the terms of his deal.
Mensah signed with Duke last offseason for what was a close to record-setting, two-year, $8 million deal. The contract seemed to work out for both sides. Duke won the 2025 ACC championship and Mensah finished second nationally in both passing yards and passing touchdowns.
If Mensah is eventually allowed to enroll at another program, Miami looms as the heavy favorite to land him, per multiple sources.
Mensah ranks as the No. 18 overall player and No. 6 quarterback in the 247Sports Transfer Portal rankings. He’s the No. 1 available prospect in the transfer portal.
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