It’s No. 5 Miami vs. Duke, and QB Darian Mensah vs. his former team on Saturday

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Miami quarterback Darian Mensah is about to face Duke for the second time this year. And once again, the stakes are sky-high. The first was in January, when Mensah was sued by the school he led to last year s Atlantic Coast Conference championship over his plan to enter the transfer portal. The sides settled and he moved on to Miami — which plays host to the Blue Devils on Saturday in a game soaked in subplots. “I try to just approach it like every other game,” Mensah said. “Obviously, it’s going to be a little bit weird playing my old team.” The Darian vs. Duke storyline is the dominant one in this matchup — there s also a Cooper Barkate vs. Duke element, since the Blue Devils top receiver from 2025 joined Mensah in Miami for this season — but there are countless other reasons why Saturday is of massive importance for both teams. — No. 5 Miami (8-1, 6-0 ACC, No. 7 CFP) is coming off its first loss of the season at Notre Dame — a defeat that c