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How comfortable is Manny Diaz with the Duke football's passing game?
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- How comfortable is Manny Diaz with the Duke football's passing game?
Manny Diaz isn't ready to call Duke football 's passing game a finished product – but the second-year coach likes where it's headed.
Diaz got an extended look at the Blue Devils ' offense at their first scrimmage of 2025 over the weekend, with quarterback Darian Mensah going 20-of-29 for 264 yards. Henry Belin IV, who started for the Blue Devils in their bowl game vs. Ole Miss , also saw time, going 14-of-26 for 175 yards and a rushing touchdown.
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The Blue Devils offense will be led by Mensah, who transferred to Duke from Tulane in December 2024. Mensah was one of the highest-touted transfers in the portal and is expected to fit well under offensive coordinator Jonathan Brewer's fast-paced and pass-heavy offensive scheme.
At Tulane, Mensah started all 13 games in 2024, going 189-of-287 (65.9%) for 2,723 yards with 22 touchdowns.
"Part of what we're doing, too, with the way we build our training camp is let's see what Darian does best, let's see what the guys that we have do best because, again, a lot of these people were not with us in spring practice," Diaz said on an August 11 availability. "So I think we've made a big step."
Duke 's wide receiver room has been bolstered by transfers Andrel Anthony (Oklahoma) and Cooper Barkate ( Harvard ), alongside returning veterans Sahmir Hagans and Que'Sean Brown, plus a handful of true freshmen and other returners.
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At the scrimmage on Saturday, Brown led the Duke wideouts with eight catches for 151 yards. Redshirt freshman Chase Tyler added four catches for 65 yards, while Anthony brought in four catches for 60 yards and Hagans five for 45.
NEW WIDEOUTS: Duke football's Andrel Anthony and Cooper Barkate on transferring to the Blue Devils
DARIAN MENSAH: Duke football quarterback Darian Mensah on why he transferred from Tulane
But Diaz knows there is progress to be made with the Blue Devils passing game.
"I think there is another step to go," Diaz said. "And I'll be very honest, we will continue to make strides as the year goes on because you get practice timing, then you get scrimmage timing, then you get into the games, and it still continues to evolve."
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The Blue Devils are two weeks into fall camp and are set to officially open their season on Thursday, Aug. 28, hosting Elon at Wallace Wade Stadium.
"My expectation is that we'll continue to grow and become a better and better throwing offense as the calendar – the leaves start to fall off the trees," Diaz said.
Anna Snyder covers Duke for The Fayetteville Observer as part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at asnyder@gannett.com or follow her @annaesnydr on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Duke football: How comfortable is Manny Diaz with the passing game?
