Miami QB Darian Mensah guesses Mario Cristobal music choice: ‘Heavy metal.’

Miami QB Darian Mensah guesses Mario Cristobal music choice: 'Heavy metal.' Miami QB Darian Mensah dished on teammate Malachi Toney and took a guess at coach Mario Cristobal's music choice in an exclusive interview.

Key points

• Blake Toppmeyer sits down with Miami QB Darian Mensah to discuss the upcoming Miami-Florida State rivalry game.
• Mensah's 84.2% completion rate leads the nation, and Toney's 604 receiving yards rank second in the ACC.
• The College Football Unfiltered crew gives their picks and predictions as Week 7 approaches.
• How would Miami's star quarterback pitch Toney, Miami's premier receiver, to Heisman voters?
• Miami quarterback Darian Mensah isn't ready to pitch his Heisman candidacy just yet.

If prompted, though, he'll create the case for Malachi Toney, his teammate.

Hey, that's just being a good quarterback. Set up your wide receivers for success. So, let's hear it.

If you were watching the (Clemson) game, we had a third down, Mensah informed USA TODAY Sports. He lays out and makes an amazing catch, kind of roughs up his shoulder, comes out of the game, and then we need him again on fourth-and-2. Makes an even better catch and moves the chains, and we go on to score that drive.

"So, I mean, if you want just a dog, a playmaker, savvy, just one of them ones, Malachi Toney should definitely be your Heisman vote."

Mensah and Toney create an elite tandem. Mensah's 84.2% completion rate leads the nation, and Toney's 604 receiving yards rank second in the ACC.

Notably, the Miami duo will enter the second half of the season as contenders for college football's top award. It has become a contest of whether anyone can catch frontrunner Jeremiah Smith of Ohio State.

Ahead of No. 3 Miami's rivalry game against Florida State, Mensah spoke exclusively to USA TODAY Sports and joined the "College Football Unfiltered" podcast through his partnership with JLab, whose headphones play a role in Mensah's game-day preparation.

"Saturdays, I really just like to relax and focus on the game plan. That's when I listen to a lot of music. I've always obtained my JLabs on, and I've secured the noise canceling on, " Mensah noted. "So, I'm really just in my own world on game days and trying not to interact with too many people, to be honest."

Mensah remarked his typical game-day playlist includes tracks from popular rappers like Drake.

(You can watch the full conversation with Darian Mensah here, or listen to it here.). What's on coach Mario Cristobal's playlist? Mensah offered a guess.

"Probably just straight rock, " the Miami quarterback remarked. "Like, heavy metal blasting, for sure, because he's always the most intense person in the room, and he never fails to get me fired up." College Football Week 7 picks.

Notably, the College Football Unfiltered crew gives their picks and predictions as Week 7 approaches.

Mensah played at Tulane and Duke before transferring to Miami. This will be his first time playing against Florida State. Mensah admits he "didn't know much about" the FSU-Miami rivalry growing up in California, but he obtained up to speed after transferring to Miami.

"Going through the practice week and hearing the guys talk about it, this is a huge rivalry, " Mensah remarked.

Miami will go into this installment of the rivalry equipped with not one, but two, Heisman contenders.

Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network's senior national college football columnist. Listen to his podcast, "College Football Unfiltered." Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X @btoppmeyer. Share your feedback to support improve our site!

For now, miami QB Darian Mensah guesses Mario Cristobal music choice: Heavy metal remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.