Miami’s Heisman push is officially a two-man operation, and that’s exactly how the school wants it.
The campaign this week went live for both Darian Mensah and Malachi Toney, with UM’s creative team rolling out a sizzle reel, a Mensah graphic tied to praise from national voices like Louis Riddick and Todd McShay, and a separate Toney graphic marked “Backed by the city.” Now the challenge for Cam Ghorbi and the staff is simple in theory and messy in practice: market two stars at once without letting one overshadow the other.
Inside the program, there doesn’t seem to be any tension at all. Mensah and Toney have been close since childhood, despite being different ages and coming from different hometowns.
Their moms get along, too. If this race turns into a fight, the source says, it won’t be coming from within the locker room.
The case for both players starts with the numbers, and the numbers are outrageous.
Mensah is completing 81.4 percent of his passes, which leads the country. He’s averaging 10.5 yards per attempt, has thrown 22 touchdowns and owns a passing efficiency rating of 204.55 - also No. 1 nationally and about 20 points clear of the field, with Jayden Daniels’ all-time record in view.
Toney’s resume is just as loud. He leads the nation with 66 catches, ranks third in yards with 952, sits third in touchdowns with 11 and tops the country with 18 plays of 20 or more yards.
That kind of production invites the usual skepticism about stat padding, but the source pushes back hard on that line of thinking. Miami barely played in the fourth quarter on Saturday, and Toney has already sat out multiple halves this season.
On his own fan ballot Tuesday morning, Mike went with Toney first, Mensah second and Jeremiah Smith third. His reasoning was blunt: Mensah would still be in the Heisman mix without Toney, but his numbers would not look like this.
“I don't think we'd be undefeated at this point. Our passing offense just runs through Malachi Toney.”
To put Toney’s season in some perspective, the source checked Xavier Restrepo’s game log from the Cam Ward year. Restrepo had a monster season of his own, averaging more than 16 yards per catch and posting big outings against Duke, Syracuse and Cal.
Even so, he never had a double-digit catch game and finished with 69 receptions. Toney is at 66 before November.
The bigger concern for Miami, if there is one, is how the Heisman vote could split. Ken Dorsey and Willis McGahee were both in the mix in 2002, and neither won. Mike usually dismisses the “splitting the vote” chatter because the award is decided by points, but with Jeremiah Smith also in the race, the second- and third-place votes could end up mattering a lot.
There is one part of this process Miami fans can actually influence: the official Heisman fan vote, which counts. It’s often treated like window dressing, but it carries points, and it can be voted on every day.
The source notes that Ole Miss fans are making a push and Oregon State fans have done better than Miami’s fan base so far. The message is clear: don’t sit this one out.
The other date to circle is November 7, when Notre Dame comes to town. Mike pointed out that John Mateer was the Heisman leader around this point last year, so nothing is settled in October. Still, that game could carry real weight for Mensah and Toney if they both deliver against CJ Carr and stay on track before then.
There’s also a feeling that Miami has been keeping Toney a little hidden. Outside of the two-point conversion against FSU, the source wonders how much of him people have really seen.
Miami is the top-scoring offense in the country by a wide margin, so it hasn’t needed to reveal everything. Mike believes Shannon Dawson handled things the same way last season.
As for Toney, the source suggests he may need one signature afternoon that shows off every part of his game: a rushing score, a passing touchdown, a catch, and a punt return for a touchdown. No one could find a player who has done all four in one game. On the right day, Toney might.
For now, Miami has what every program wants and very few get: two legitimate Heisman candidates, both from the same offense, both with numbers that can’t be ignored.
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