Fernando Mendoza

Early life

Fernando Gabriel Mendoza V was born on October 1, 2003, in Boston, Massachusetts, to Elsa Espino and Fernando G. Mendoza IV, who was completing his medical residency at the time. He has two younger brothers, Alberto and Maximo. His family is of Cuban descent; all four of his grandparents were born and raised in Cuba before emigrating to Miami, Florida, in 1960 following the Cuban Revolution. Through his family lineage, Mendoza is a descendant of Don Antonio Ysidoro González de Mendoza Bonilla (1828–1906), a prominent lawyer of Spanish descent who served as the first president of the Supreme Court of Cuba.

Mendoza was raised in Miami and attended Christopher Columbus High School in the Miami-Dade County community of Westchester. Growing up, he considered Tom Brady to be his football idol. As his high school team's starting quarterback across two seasons, Mendoza completed 133 of 203 pass attempts for 1,396 yards and 16 touchdowns with four interceptions, while also rushing for 137 yards and a touchdown on the ground. During his senior year in 2021, he led Columbus to an 11–3 record and a berth in the state semifinals against Venice High School in the FHSAA Class 8A football playoffs.

2022 season

Mendoza initially committed to play college football for the Yale Bulldogs in 2021. In February 2022, however, he signed with the California Golden Bears of the University of California, Berkeley. Mendoza redshirted during the 2022 season.

2023 season

Mendoza earned his first career start for California in week six of the 2023 season against Oregon State. He completed 21 of 32 pass attempts for 207 yards and two touchdowns with an interception in a loss to the Beavers. A week later, he was 10 of 17 passing for 149 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in a loss to Utah. Mendoza was named the team's starting quarterback heading forward. In eight starts as a redshirt freshman, he completed 63 percent of his passes for 1,708 yards and 14 touchdowns, leading the Golden Bears to a 6–7 record and an Independence Bowl appearance against Texas Tech.

2024 season

Entering the 2024 season, Mendoza won the starting quarterback job, beating graduate transfer Chandler Rogers. In week two against Auburn, Mendoza completed 25 of 36 passes for 233 yards and two touchdowns, leading the Bears to an upset win over the Tigers. Mendoza was named ACC quarterback of the week in back-to-back games against Oregon State and Wake Forest, setting career highs in passing yards and completions. His 56 passing attempts against Wake Forest were the most by a California quarterback since 2016. On December 11, 2024, Mendoza announced he would be entering the NCAA transfer portal. In 2025, he graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Berkeley's Haas School of Business.

Indiana

On December 23, 2024, Mendoza announced that he would transfer to Indiana University Bloomington to play for the Hoosiers. At Indiana, he pursued a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree at the Kelley School of Business.

2025 season

In the 2025 season opener against the Old Dominion Monarchs, Mendoza completed 18 of 31 passes for 193 yards and scored a touchdown on a five-yard rush as Indiana won 27–14. He completed 18 of 25 passes for 245 yards and four touchdowns against the Kennesaw State Owls, leading the Hoosiers to a 56–9 win. Against the Indiana State Sycamores, Mendoza completed 19 of 20 passes for 270 yards and five touchdowns, and ran for an additional touchdown in a 73–0 win; he did not return to the game after halftime.

Mendoza threw for a career-high five passing touchdowns against the No. 9 Illinois Fighting Illini on 21 of 23 passing with 267 yards. In a 20–15 win against the Iowa Hawkeyes, Mendoza completed 13 of 23 passes for 233 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. He completed 20 of 31 passes for 215 yards, one touchdown, and one interception in a 30–20 upset win on the road against the No. 3 Oregon Ducks. Mendoza threw for a season-high 332 yards on 24 of 28 passing while defeating the Michigan State Spartans 38–13. He led the Hoosiers to a 56–6 win against the UCLA Bruins, completing 15 of 22 passes for 168 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception, adding a rushing touchdown; he left the game in the third quarter. Mendoza completed 14 of 21 passes for 201 yards, one touchdown, and one interception, with one rushing touchdown, as the Hoosiers defeated the Maryland Terrapins, 55–10.

In a 27–24 road win against the Penn State Nittany Lions, Mendoza completed 19 of 30 passes for 218 yards, one touchdown, and one interception, adding a rushing touchdown; the passing touchdown, to wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr., came in the final moments of the game to take the lead and was widely described as "a Heisman moment". Against the Wisconsin Badgers, he threw his 30th touchdown pass of the season, eclipsing the Indiana single-season program record set by Kurtis Rourke the previous season; Mendoza finished the game 22 of 24 passing for 299 yards and four touchdowns in a 31–7 win. In the final game of the regular season, the Old Oaken Bucket rivalry game against the Purdue Boilermakers, Mendoza completed 8 of 15 passes for 177 yards and two touchdowns, with one rushing touchdown, before leaving the game in the third quarter; Indiana won 56–3 to seal the program's first perfect regular season in the coldest game ever played at Ross-Ade Stadium.

In the 2025 Big Ten Championship Game against the No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes, Mendoza threw for 222 yards and a touchdown, leading Indiana to a 13–10 victory and their first Big Ten title since 1967. He was named the game's MVP for his performance. Mendoza led Indiana to its first bowl game win since 1991, defeating the No. 9 Alabama Crimson Tide 38–3 in the 2026 Rose Bowl; he completed 14 of 16 passes for 192 yards and three touchdowns. Mendoza completed 17 of 20 passes for 177 yards and five touchdowns while defeating Oregon 56–22 in the 2026 Peach Bowl. In the 2026 College Football Playoff National Championship against the Miami Hurricanes, he completed 16 passes for 186 yards while also rushing for a 12-yard touchdown, leading the Hoosiers to a 27–21 victory and the school's first-ever national title. For his performance, Mendoza received the Offensive Player of the Game award.

For the 2025 season, Mendoza was named the AP College Football Player of the Year, the winner of the Chicago Tribune Silver Football, and the Walter Camp Award. He was also the winner of both the Maxwell Award and the Davey O'Brien Award. He was also named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, Big Ten Quarterback of the Year, and first-team All-Big Ten. He was announced to be one of the four Heisman Trophy finalists, along with Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin, Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia, and Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love, ultimately being named the recipient of the award. Mendoza became the first player in Indiana school history to win the Heisman Trophy. After the season, he announced he would forego his final year of NCAA eligibility and declare for the 2026 NFL draft.

Personal life

Mendoza is a devout Roman Catholic. He has spoken publicly about his faith and incorporates daily Mass into his game-day routine. While at Indiana, he also helped organize team Bible studies on campus and has credited his faith with fostering camaraderie among his teammates.

Mendoza's younger brother, Alberto, was the backup quarterback for the Indiana Hoosiers during Mendoza's tenure; he transferred to the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in January 2026.

Cultural identity