Darian Mensah’s decision to transfer from Duke on the final day of the portal window left the Blue Devils with limited options in their search for a quarterback.
They found San Jose State transfer Walker Eget, who was both injured and uncertain to receive a sixth-year of eligibility from the NCAA.
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“There was no guarantee he was going to be eligible this season,” Duke coach Manny Diaz said Tuesday. “But after getting feedback on who he was as a person, after watching his film, in comparison to everyone else that was available and that was out there, we still felt like he was worth the risk of going for him without knowing for certain that he would have this year to be eligible. Since he’s been here, that faith has been rewarded.”
Eget was named the Blue Devils’ starting quarterback Tuesday, edging second-year player Dan Mahan for the top job.
“What we saw is who he is,” Diaz said. “What we thought he could be in this offense compared to some of the things that they asked him to do at San Jose, we feel good about. It was a crazy process back then, but we’re happy the way it turned out.”
Eget, at 6-foot-3 and 235 pounds, spent five seasons at San Jose State in the Mountain West. He played one game in 2021, three games in 2022 and didn’t play in 2023. He was the Spartans’ primary starter each of the last two seasons, throwing for more than 5,000 yards and 30 touchdowns over that span. He played through a right knee injury suffered in October 2024 and wore a heavy brace on the knee at Duke’s first training camp practice.
Diaz said Eget passed every benchmark set by the medical and strength staff and was exposed to more and more defensive pressure throughout training camp.
Eget was previously granted an NCAA waiver for eligibility in 2026.
“When it all came down to it, it was just about consistency, which is normally just what you expect from an older guy, keeping the same level day after day,” Diaz said.
Mahan, a 6-foot-2, 200-pound redshirt freshman from Burlington, enrolled in January 2025. He has shown flashes in practices and was expected to be a top contender for the job in 2027 after Mensah’s expected final season in Durham. But that timeline was scrambled with Mensah’s decision to transfer.
“We’re really pleased at how both quarterbacks developed,” Diaz said. “I think Dan has really made massive strides with all the reps he got in spring when Walker was limited and then just through the competition that we had in training camp. I think the team believes that we can win with both guys.”
Added Diaz: “It was a good decision because it was a hard decision.”
Diaz said he thought it was important for his team, given the situation with Mensah’s acrimonious departure for fellow ACC school Miami, that he name a starting quarterback.
The Blue Devils, who won the ACC title last season, open their season Sept. 5 at home against Tulane.
Duke also has freshman Terry Walker III and transfers Blaine Hipa and Ari Patu in the program at quarterback.
