College football in the era of the transfer portal can make some strange stories, but Tulane coach Jon Sumrall knows why the game is the way that it is. Sumrall and Tulane are preparing for a visit from former Tulane QB Darian Mensah, who now is a Duke Blue Devil. By all indications, Mensah enjoyed his time at Tulane, but when the potential for NIL big bucks came knocking after the 2024 season, he made the power conference jump. No hard feelings, says Sumrall. Sumrall, who also noted in the press conference that he “love[s] Darian to death,” appears to simply recognize reality. Mensah, who has been reported as the highest paid QB in college football this year, saw an opportunity and took advantage. So did Sumrall, who is now in his second season at Tulane after moving up from Troy following the departure of Willie Fritz for Houston. For that matter, Sumrall himself, with a 34-9 career mark at Troy and Tulane is beginning to be linked to power conference job openings himself. Sumrall played at Kentucky, and w
