Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza gave up trying to escape the whirlwind he helped create by marching the Hoosiers right back into playoff position with an undefeated regular season on pause during a bye this week.
Mendoza, a transfer from Cal who took over for Kurtis Rourke at Indiana this season, is viewed as a near-certain Heisman Trophy finalist for steering the Hoosiers to an 11-0 start and perfect, 8-0 Big Ten record with only the battle for the Old Oaken Bucket — a traditional rivalry game with state and conference rival Purdue — before a chance to play for the Big Ten title in Indianapolis on Dec. 6.
“I never thought I’d be in this moment at this point,” Mendoza said Wednesday.
Indiana is No. 2 in the College Football Playoff rankings and No. 1 Ohio State has a chance to pull even with the Hoosiers at 11-0 overall entering the final week of the regular season. The Buckeyes still have to tackle a massive hurdle. Their annual showdown with No. 18 Michigan (8-2) on Nov. 29 could cause the conference standings and playoff rankings to shuffle.
Mendoza’s final regular-season game of the season at Purdue might not set up as stress-free, but the Boilermarkers are winless in the Big Ten (0-8) and have lost nine consecutive games.
With the Hoosiers out of their usual routine this week during a bye, Mendoza said he’s listening to common advice from elders and previous Heisman winners who told him to enjoy the ride.
“I was able to talk to Matt Leinart a couple of weeks ago, and he’s a Heisman Trophy winner, fantastic quarterback, and has a great TV personality,” Mendoza said. “His advice was similar to what I got from a lot of the others, but it really stuck with me is this only happens once — unless you’re Tim Tebow. But a lot of people only go through this once, and they end up heading to the NFL or just things happen. Just enjoy it. Take the present moment in.”
Mendoza has 30 TD passes and five interceptions with five rushing touchdowns in 11 games. Indiana has outscored opponents 476-128 this season and given up only 55 total second-half points. Suffice it to say Mendoza hasn’t had to escape high-pressure moments to reach his seat in the Heisman and national championship conversations.
He does have a win at Oregon and threw a pinpoint game-winning touchdown pass at Penn State to preserve Indiana’s road to perfection with a 27-24 victory two weeks ago.
The cool and collected Mendoza, whose brother Alberto is a freshman backup quarterback on the Indiana roster, credits his unflinchingly positive demeanor to backyard ball and stress tests against his younger sibling.
“We’d make up high-pressure situations, whether it was University of Miami versus University of Florida in the National Championship or the Patriots versus the Dolphins. Whatever the situation was, it was a high-pressure situation,” Fernando Mendoza said. “I know it’s really helped my game about — I know it sounds silly because it’s in the backyard and it’s not actual schematic football, but I think it’s helped myself a lot throughout my journey.”
NFL pundits are standing up to take notice of Mendoza’s rise. He’s projected to be a top-five pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Fringe college football fans or anyone who didn’t catch Cal in 2024 might not know Mendoza was a two-year starter who has long since erased his modest recruiting ranking — two whole stars. But Fernando Mendoza says he’s nowhere near a finished product.
“I wouldn’t say this is the pinnacle of my career by any chance. I think I still have a long way to go. I still think I’m a raw quarterback prospect. However, it’s been great to be part of this opportunity,” Mendoza said.
“At a young age, I didn’t have a … crystal ball. I wasn’t this young prodigy, who was a five star coming out of high school or the next big thing, but I would say I’m just so grateful to be in the position that I am right now. I just can’t thank the support staff I have around myself enough and can’t thank the Lord enough.”
