Manny Diaz Updates Duke's Quarterback Situation

We are just over two weeks away from the start of the college football season for the Duke Blue Devils as they will host Tulane to begin the new campaign. It will be a rematch of last season's thrilling game at Tulane where the Green Wave beat the Blue Devils. 

But this season, the quarterback position will look at lot different for both teams. 

Tulane has moved on from Jake Retzlaff, and Duke is now without Darian Mensah who is now at Miami. Both teams entered this offseason with a quarterback battle and for Duke, that battle is ongoing. 

San Jose State transfer Walker Eget and redshirt freshman Dan Mahan are battling it out for the starting job. There's been no clear winner thus far as Diaz and the coaching staff continue to evaluate it. 

Diaz revealed what the team is now looking for when making a decision. 

“You know we’re not even considering the separation aspect of it,” Diaz said. “We’re looking at Walker and Dan, and are they able to move the football and execute in our offense?”

It's very tough to tell who is in the lead right now but the belief was that Eget probably has the upper hand due to the experience he has. Eget was a 2025 All-Mountain West honorable mention, and played well at San Jose State. 

For Mahan, he's been in Diaz's system already and was able to watch Mensah while learning last season. But the experience is limited which may impact his chances. 

Whoever wins the job, Diaz believes the team will rally around them to lead the offense. 

“I’m proud of the way they’re working,” Diaz said. “I think the team believes in both guys.  “They both have enough evidence of what they’ve done in the first 11 practices to show that they can quarterback the team.”

Ideally, Duke would love to announce the starter sooner than later but if no one emerges as the clear leader, this thing could easily go into the regular season. We can't rule out a change mid-season either, especially if the starter struggles out of the gate.