From No Offers to No. 1: Fernando Mendoza’s Championship Journey
- Mayline Ruiz
- 2 hours ago
- 5 min read
Indiana University was crowned the winner of the 2026 College Football Playoff National Championship after defeating the University of Miami 27-21. It was a challenging journey they went through while facing a tough schedule, playing against Penn State, the University of Oregon, and Iowa.
Their championship was won with players who were considered misfits. Players such as Roman Hemby, Charlie Becker, and Nico Radicic were some of the few players who helped bring Indiana their first national title. While it takes a village to win a championship and have a successful season, there was one player who had a substantial role in bringing a title home, and that is Fernando Mendoza.
Mendoza was born in Miami, Florida, and spent time going to Hard Rock Stadium to watch the Miami Hurricanes play. While he was in high school, Mendoza attended Columbus High School, where he played from 2019 to 2022. During that time, Mendoza had 1396 yards, 16 touchdown passes, and 133 completions.
As high school was nearing an end for Mendoza, he was starting to look at different universities he could attend. Mendoza hadn’t received any offers, and in 2021, he committed to play for Yale University. After a few months, he decommitted from Yale and began talking to another school, the University of California, Berkeley. It wasn’t until February 2022 that Mendoza committed to Cal.
During his first season at Berkeley, Mendoza redshirted, and he didn’t make his first appearance until Cal faced Oregon State. Before this, Mendoza was the third quarterback, right behind Sam Jackson and Ben Finley. However, after both players were facing injuries, Mendoza was set to make his first appearance with Cal. Berkeley lost to Oregon State 52-40, where Mendoza threw 21 for 32 passes, had 207 passing yards, and two touchdowns.
Mendoza went through four losses against Utah (34-14), USC (50-49), Oregon (63-19), and Oregon State. Mendoza got his first win against Washington State, where Cal won in a close game, 42-39. Mendoza had 150 passing yards, threw for 14 out of 21 passes, and had two touchdowns.
Mendoza went on a three-game win streak after the game against Washington, in which Cal defeated Stanford (27-15) and UCLA (33-7). Berkeley even went to the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl to face Texas Tech, where Cal lost 34 -14. Mendoza closed the season out with 1708 passing yards, 86 rushing yards, 63% CMP, 14 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions.
As the 2023 season came to a close, Mendoza was set to be the starting quarterback for Cal’s 2024 season. During the 2024 season, Mendoza had a breakout year where he had 3004 passing yards, 105 rushing yards, 68.7 CMP, 16 touchdowns, and six interceptions. Mendoza brought huge wins to Cal, such as their games against Stanford, where they won 24-21, Auburn, where they won 21-14, and San Diego State, where they won 31-10.
On Dec. 11, 2024, Mendoza entered the NCAA transfer portal following his two seasons at Cal, where he decided to go to Indiana University and get the opportunity to play with his brother, Alberto Mendoza. Fernando was set to play quarterback for Indiana following Kurtis Rourke’s departure.
The Hoosiers season started against the Old Dominion Monarchs, where Indiana won 27-14. The Hoosiers went on to have a 13-0 season before making a College Football Playoff appearance. As the season progressed, Mendoza was getting recognition, and before he knew it, people were calling him HeisMendoza.
On Dec. 8 2025, the 2025 Heisman Trophy finalists were announced. Alongside Mendoza, Diego Pavia from Vanderbilt, Julian Sayin from Ohio State, and Jeremiyah Love from Notre Dame were the four finalists for the award. Five days later, Mendoza was awarded the 2025 Heisman Trophy and became the first Indiana Hoosier to win the trophy. Mendoza won 643 first-place votes, Pavia finished second with 189 first-place votes, Love had 46 first-place votes, and Sayin received eight first-place votes.
Following the Heisman ceremony, the Hoosiers went on to face Alabama at the College Football Playoff Quarterfinal at the Rose Bowl Presented by Prudential, where Indiana won 38-3. Mendoza had 192 passing yards, 87.5% CMP, three touchdowns, and zero interceptions. Indiana then went on to face Oregon for the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, where Indiana won 56-22. Mendoza had 177 passing yards, 85% CMP, five touchdowns, and zero interceptions.
Indiana’s final game was set to be against Miami, where they would be facing each other at the College Football Playoff National Championship at Hard Rock Stadium. The Hoosiers won their first title in a 27-21 game where Mendoza had 186 passing, 59.3% CMP, zero touchdowns, and zero interceptions. Mendoza had a memorable play where he ran for 12 yards to score a touchdown in the 4th quarter, which put the score at 24-14.
The Hoosiers went undefeated during the 2025 season, and they gave their fans an incredible memory. With the Hoosiers finishing their season on a high note, there were some questions about what the 2026 season would look like. While Mendoza still has one year left of eligibility, he declared for the 2026 NFL draft. Mendoza finished the 2025 season off with 3535 passing yards, 72% CMP, 276 rushing yards, 41 touchdowns, and six interceptions.
The 2026 NFL Draft will be held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from April 23-25. The Las Vegas Raiders are set to have the first pick of the draft, and many are expecting the Raiders to take Mendoza. In fact, during the final between Miami and Indiana, Tom Brady, who is a minority owner of the Raiders, was in attendance. Following the Raiders, the New York Jets and Arizona Cardinals are next in line regarding the draft order.
With the Draft being a few months away, who do you think will draft Mendoza? What did you think of his season with Indiana? Let me know what you think!
Edited by Mary Merensky
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