Miami's Darian Mensah makes Malachi Toney's Heisman case ahead of first Florida State game

Darian Mensah has never played in a Miami-Florida State game. That changes Saturday, and the quarterback for the unbeaten Hurricanes spent part of the week making a Heisman case for his top receiver. He also guessed what his head coach plays in his headphones.

In an interview with Blake Toppmeyer of USA TODAY Sports, Mensah pointed to Malachi Toney's work in the 41-13 win at Clemson. On a third down, Toney laid out for a catch and hurt his shoulder doing it. He left the game, then came back on fourth-and-2 for another catch that moved the chains on a scoring drive. Mensah called Toney a playmaker who deserves votes. Asked about Mario Cristobal's playlist, Mensah guessed rock, "heavy metal blasting, for sure," and explained that Cristobal is always the most intense person in the room.

The lighter moments sat on top of real production. USA TODAY Sports reported that Mensah's 84.2% completion rate leads the nation and that Toney's 604 receiving yards rank second in the ACC. That gives No. 3 Miami two Heisman candidates heading into the second half of the season. The outlet framed the national race as a chase of Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith. Mensah, who grew up in California and played at Tulane and Duke before transferring, admitted he knew little about the rivalry before arriving. Practice this week and his teammates' talk got him up to speed. He said his own game-day routine is quiet: noise-canceling headphones, a playlist that includes Drake, and as little conversation as possible.

What it means for Florida State

Miami is 5-0, and its scores have been lopsided. The Hurricanes have outscored opponents 248-49, which works out to 49.6 points scored and 9.8 allowed per game. Their closest result was a 13-point win at Wake Forest, 33-20. Since then they have beaten Central Michigan 52-3 and Clemson by 28 on the road. Only one opponent has reached 20 points. The Seminoles visit Saturday, October 17, on ESPN and Disney+.

The board for Florida State at Miami covers 12 venues, and all of them make Miami a heavy favorite. On Novig, Miami is -1329 on the moneyline, which pays $7.52 profit per $100. Florida State is +1150. Novig has Miami favored by 21.5 points at -102. Among the other venues, the best Miami price is Pinnacle's -21 at -115, half a point shorter at a steeper cost. Hold across the sportsbooks runs from 2.8% to 4.8% on the moneyline and from 3.2% to 6.7% on the spread.

The total sits at 56.5 on Novig, with the over at +102 and the under at -106. The other venues range by a point and a half. Fanatics has the over at 56 for -110, and theScore Bet offers the under at 57.5 for -115. For comparison, Miami's games have averaged 59.4 combined points, a figure pulled upward by the 77-7 win over Florida A&M. The Clemson game finished at 54.

For Mensah, the rivalry is new. For the market, Miami's season so far settles the question of who is favored, and the open question is the margin.