A year of firsts for Indiana continued on Saturday night, when quarterback Fernando Mendoza was named the winner of the 2025 Heisman Trophy.
Mendoza, a redshirt junior from Miami, Florida, who began his collegiate career at Cal, is the Hoosiers’ first-ever Heisman winner. Prior to this season, the school had only ever produced 1 other Heisman Trophy finalist — Anthony Thompson, the 1989 runner-up.
But, behind Mendoza, Indiana has been a trailblazer for much of the season, so Saturday’s result doesn’t come as much of a surprise.
He beat out Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love, Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin, and Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia for the award.
Texas Tech linebacker Jacob Rodriguez finished fifth in voting for the award, followed by Ohio State wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton, Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, Ohio State safety Caleb Downs, and Georgia Tech quarterback Haynes King.
Mendoza transferred from Cal over the offseason, joining Curt Cignetti in Bloomington and picking up the reins from Kurtis Rourke, who led Indiana to its first 11-win season in school history.
The 6-foot-5 Mendoza propelled IU to a 12-0 regular season, a Big Ten Championship victory over Ohio State, and the top overall seed in the College Football Playoff.
Indiana’s unbeaten run through the regular season was its first since 1945, when it went 9-0-1. IU was voted the No. 1 team in the AP Top 25 for the first time in program history. The 13-10 win over the Buckeyes on Dec. 5 gave IU its first outright Big Ten championship since 1945, as well as its first win over Ohio State since 1988.
Heading into bowl season, Mendoza is the only quarterback in the FBS with 5 games of 4 touchdown passes or more and no interceptions. He leads the nation in touchdowns thrown (33) and leads all power conference quarterbacks in touchdowns responsible for (39).
Mendoza has accounted for 2,980 yards through the air while completing 71.5% of his passes. He has just 6 interceptions this season.
Mendoza doesn’t lead the country in completion rate. He isn’t even top-20 in passing yards. Julian Sayin, a Heisman finalist, is the national leader in quarterback rating. He’s not the nation’s best deep-ball passer. He doesn’t have the most explosive plays.
This Heisman Trophy battle wasn’t like the Jayden Daniels win a few seasons ago, where video game-like numbers made the answer obvious. It wasn’t like last season’s race, when a generational talent made the answer undeniable. No, this Heisman win was about something deeper.
Mendoza was the most outstanding player on a team that defied expectations every step of the way.
At the beginning of August, Indiana was +10000 to win the national championship at BetMGM. The Hoosiers had worse odds than Auburn to win the title. When BetMGM opened betting on the Heisman Trophy, Mendoza was +5500 to win the award.
Very few expected IU to do what IU has done. Except Cignetti, of course.
“None of us were surprised he’s a finalist,” Cignetti told IU’s Pete DiPrimio for a feature on his quarterback. “We saw that coming for quite a long time. He solidified his place the other night (against Ohio State). It’s a credit to him for being as committed as he is for putting himself in position to play like he plays. His teammates and the assistant coaches are a big part of that.
“What stands out to me is the way he performs when the game is on the line, the plays he makes, the throws he makes. He’s made a number of big plays with his legs, as well. We’ve been involved in quite a few tight contests, away from home or at a neutral venue, and that’s when he seems to lock in and play his best ball.”
Perhaps no moment was bigger than the Hoosiers’ final drive at Beaver Stadium on Nov. 8. Indiana took the ball with 1:51 to play, positioned at its own 20, trailing 24-20.
A first-down sack put the Hoosiers at their own 13.
Nine plays later, Mendoza connected with Omar Cooper Jr. in the back of the endzone for a 7-yard touchdown on third down. Indiana went up 27-24. Thirty-six seconds remained in the game.
A Heisman Moment, clear as day.
That play, and the resulting win — Indiana’s first-ever in at Beaver Stadium — instantly became one of the greatest moments in Indiana football history. Because it signaled this truly special season might actually go the distance.
“Mendoza refused to lose,” Cignetti told Voice of the Hoosiers Don Fischer during the postgame radio interview that day. “I can’t say enough about him.”
With Mendoza leading the way, Indiana went 3-0 this season in games decided by less than 7 points. The Hoosiers also beat Oregon, which was ranked No. 3 at the time and earned the 5-seed in the CFP, by 10 points in Eugene. Mendoza had 215 yards passing, 31 yards rushing, and a key fourth-quarter touchdown that day.
Next, the Hoosiers will look to win a Playoff game, something they didn’t do last season. They will face the winner of Oklahoma-Alabama on Jan. 1 at the Rose Bowl. If Mendoza can lead Indiana to the title game, IU will be playing for its first-ever national championship.
The Heisman winner hasn’t played on a national championship team since 2020, when DeVonta Smith helped Alabama to a title.
But, if anything was learned from this year of firsts at IU, it’s that you can’t count out the Hoosiers.
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
