Three weeks ago when Clemson faced Miami, it saw a familiar duo that gave them trouble in the Duke matchup last season. Hurricanes quarterback Darian Mensah and wide receiver Cooper Barkate made their second trip into Memorial Stadium in two years. While they each had performances in this season’s matchup that were similar, they were not as eye-popping as what they both did a year ago.
As a Blue Devil, Mensah completed 66 percent of his passes for 361 yards and four touchdowns against the Tigers. This season with the Hurricanes, Mensah completed 66 percent of his passes again, for 227 yards and a touchdown. He also had another touchdown using his legs.
While playing for Duke, Barkate caught six passes for 127 yards and a touchdown against the Clemson defense. As a Cane, Barkate had five receptions for 98 yards and a touchdown.
This week, the Tigers will see two more players who gave them issues last season that were paired together in Blacksburg. One player they saw in last year’s bowl game. The other one completes the trio of Duke playmakers that torched the Clemson defense through the air last season in Mensah and Barkate.
Ethan Grunkemeyer turned heads in the Pinstripe Bowl for Penn State
Last season, Ethan Grunkemeyer became the starting quarterback for Penn State after Drew Allar suffered a season ending injury. His first three games in this role were rough, as the Nittany Lions lost each of them with Grunkemeyer throwing for just one touchdown pass.
He began to flip the script during the final stretch of the season however, leading Penn State to four straight wins to end the year, as he threw six touchdown passes and no interceptions. This included an impressive showing in the Pinstripe Bowl against Clemson.
Grunkemeyer started that game not playing particularly well. He completed just 12 of 20 passes for 70 yards in the first half. He began to turn things up in the second half though, especially in the fourth quarter.
Grunkemeyer threw two touchdown passes in the last 15 minutes of the game to lift the Nittany Lions over the Tigers. He finished the day completing 68 percent of his passes for 262 yards and two touchdowns.
Following the bowl game, Grunkemeyer entered the transfer portal to eventually follow his former head coach, James Franklin, to Virginia Tech. He has continued to elevate his game since becoming a Hokie. Much of that has to do with the weapons Franklin surrounded him with.
Que’Sean Brown was a total menace when starring for Duke last season
One of the biggest grabs out of the portal for Franklin in his first year leading Virginia Tech was former Duke wide receiver Que’Sean Brown. He was the second-leading receiver for the Blue Devils last year with 64 catches for 846 yards and five touchdowns on the season.
Brown was also the second-leading receiver in Duke’s 46-45 win over the Tigers in 2025. He recorded six receptions for 80 yards and two touchdowns in the matchup.
What makes Brown so dangerous is his speed, as well as his ability to get the ball in different ways to make plays. One of the main objectives of the Hokies’ offense is to put the ball in Brown’s hands as much as possible. All eyes will need to be on Brown in order to slow down the explosive Hokies offense.
Grunkemeyer-Brown pairing makes Virginia Tech offense tough to stop
Since being paired together, Grunkemeyer and Brown have been playing some really sound offensive football.
Grunkemeyer enters the game with the fourth most passing yards, tied for the seventh most touchdown passes, and 10th best completion percentage amongst FBS quarterbacks. He is completing 72.6 percent of his passes for 1,984 yards and 15 touchdowns to only two interceptions.
Brown has caught 46 of Grunkemeyer’s passes for 616 yards and three touchdowns. He is top five in the ACC in receptions and receiving yards.
Slowing down this tandem will not be easy. It gets harder when having to be aware of Virginia Tech's star tight end Luke Reynolds as well. If the Tigers pass rush can affect Grunkemeyer, while Ashton Hampton and company stay on the hip of Brown in coverage, it will put them in position to win and continue making a push to the ACC Championship Game.
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