NFL Draft Scout
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Name: Fernando Mendoza (Transfer from California)
College: Indiana
Number: 15
School Bio/Stats Link: HERE
Height: 6-5 Weight: 236
Position: Pos2:
Class/Draft Year: rJr/2026
40 Low: 4.64 40 Time: 4.70 40 High: 4.76
> Projected Round: Stock: 
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Data Scout Notes: X-#1 Pick/Big Arm Accurate RPO Passer-Built from 2* Recruit/66%-QB1-63%-14-10-23 2026: 01-23-26 Announced Early Entry into the 2026 NFL Draft...**2025: HeismanTrophyFinalist/QBOYC/1stC/MaxwellAwardFinalist/DaveyOBrienFinalist...2024: NAC...12-09-24 Transfer from California...2023: HM-ORoYC...2022: NAC
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Combine Invite: Yes
Height: 6046
Weight: 236
Zybek PD3X AKA "Official"
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Dates: 04/01/26
Hand: 09 1/2 Arm: 31 7/8
Wingspan: 76 3/4
Height: 6046
Weight: 236
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Fernando Mendoza, Indiana, Player News
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Fernando Mendoza's 17-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Sarratt gave No. 2 Indiana the lead midway through the third quarter and the Hoosiers' stingy defense shut down No. 1 Ohio State the rest of the way in a 13-10 victory on Saturday night for their first Big Ten championship since 1967. Indiana likely locked up the top seed in the College Football Playoff while extending the best record in school history to 13-0. The Hoosiers are also now poised to claim the No. 1 spot in The Associated Press Top 25 for the first time. They did it by snapping a 30-game losing streak against the Buckeyes that stretched to 1988. Indiana also ended major college football's longest winning streak at 16 games, sealing the win with a 33-yard pass from Mendoza to Charlie Becke r on third down, a play that took the clock down to the 2-minute timeout. Ohio State fell to 12-1 overall though its quest to win back-to-back national championships for the first time will likely begin with the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye.Th e Buckeyes had a chance to retake the lead on fourth-and-1 from the Indiana 5-yard line late in the third quarter. But a replay review overturned the call on the field, determining Julian Sayin came up short. They also had a chance to tie the score with 2:48 to play, but Jayden Fielding missed a 29-yard field goal wide left. The two quarterbacks dueling for the Heisman Trophy essentially played to a draw. Mendoza was injured on the first offensive play of the game but returned after missing one play and finished 15 of 23 for 222 yards and the one TD and one interception. Sayin was 21 of 29 for 258 yards, one TD and one interception. But when the big plays needed to be made, Mendoza usually got the job done Indiana took a 3-0 lead after Sayin was picked off in the first quarter, but the Buckeyes turned Mendoza's miscue into a 17-yard TD pass to Carnell Tate for a 7-3 lead late in the first quarter. The teams traded second quarter field goals as the Buckeyes took a 10-6 lead, but Mendoza found neatly tu cked a TD pass into Sarratt near the sideline on Indiana's first possession of the third quarter and that was all they needed. - Indiana/AP College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026  QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: Indiana/AP College Football
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2025 BIG TEN GRIESE-BREES QUARTERBACK OF THE YEAR: Fernando Mendoza, Indiana,...Mendoza was named the Graham-George Offensive Player of the Year and Griese-Brees Quarterback of the Year. He is the first to earn the conference's quarterback of the year ho nor since its inception in 2011. He is the fourth Hoosier to earn Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and joins Anthony Thompson (1988 & 1989) and Antwaan Randle El (2001). Along with those honors, Mendoza was the first-team All-Big Ten quarterback and is just the seventh IU signal caller and first since Randle El in 2001 to earn first team honors. It is just the third time since 1950 a Hoosier took the first team spot at quarterback along with Randle EL and Harry Gonso (1967). - Indiana Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: Indiana Football
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WEEK 12 BIG TEN CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Fernando Mendoza, Indiana, QB - Jr. - Miami, Fla. - Christopher Columbus,...Connected on 22-of-24 passes for 299 yards and four touchdowns in the Hoosiers' win against Wisconsin...Led five total scoring dr ives, with four ending in passing scores and one in a field goal that gave IU a 10-3 lead entering halftime...Engineered a nine-play, 75-yard drive to open the second half and give IU a 10-point lead it would not relinquish...Helped Indiana win a program -record-tying 11th victory and finish the season undefeated at home and set an IU single-season mark for touchdown passes with his 30th of the season in the fourth quarter to Omar Cooper Jr...Last Indiana Offensive Player of the Week: Fernando Mendoza (S ept. 22, 2025). - Big Ten Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: Big Ten Football
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Fernando Mendoza completed 91.7% of his passes for 299 yards and four touchdowns as No. 2 Indiana took another step toward clinching a spot in its first Big Ten title game and likely a second straight playoff berth with a 31-7 victory over Wisconsin on S aturday. Mendoza spent some time in the injury tent during the fourth quarter, but returned on the next Indiana series to throw his school-record-breaking 30th TD of the season - a 5-yarder to Omar Cooper Jr. Mendoza continued to make his Heisman Trophy case by going 22 of 24 despite being sacked five times. The Hoosiers (11-0, 8-0 Big Ten, No. 2 CFP) are undefeated through 11 games the first time in school history and have tied last season's record-setting victory total. They also improved to 15-0 at h ome - the longest winning streak in school history - in coach Curt Cignetti's two-year tenure.Wisconsin (3-7, 1-6) has lost to five ranked teams this season but has not beaten a top-10 team on the road since 2019. Carter Smith became the first tru e freshman to start a game for the Badgers since 1991 and finished 9 of 15 with 98 yards, including a 45-yard TD pass to Lance Mason. He also had two turnovers and Wisconsin generated only 23 total yards in the second half. Indiana took control by closin g the first half with a 37-yard field goal to make it 10-7 and opening the second half with a 2-yard TD pass from Mendoza to Holden Staes. The Hoosiers then converted a Badgers turnover into a 21-yard TD pass from Mendoza to Riley Nowakowski, the former Badger. Mendoza and Cooper closed it out with a fourth quarter scoring play for the second straight week. Wisconsin running back Gideon Ituka left the game on a cart, strapped to a backboard midway through the third quarter after taking two big hits on t he same and then hitting his head hard on the playing surface. He gave a thumbs-up signal on his way off. The Badgers did not have an immediate update on Ituka's condition. - Indiana/AP College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: Indiana/AP College Football
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The volatility and unpredictability of the 2025 college football season has rippled through the group of draft-eligible quarterbacks. ESPN repolled 25 NFL scouts and executives about who will be the first quarterback taken in the 2026 NFL draft, with the results drastically different from six weeks ago. In the latest poll, Indiana's Fernando Mendoza was the top vote-getter with 13 votes, putting him ahead of Oregon's Dante Moore (6) and Alabama's Ty Simpson (3). Notably, none of those quarterbacks recei ved a vote in the first poll, and all have eligibility remaining.The other three quarterbacks receiving votes were Oklahoma's John Mateer (1), Cincinnati's Brendan Sorsby (1) and South Carolina's LaNorris Sellers (1). Only Sellers and Mateer had v otes in the first poll. "It's not a stellar class," one scout told ESPN. "If you add the maybes [who have eligibility and could leave school], now it gets interesting. The top is better than last year's class, for sure." The top of this year's crop has f lipped from Sept. 20, when seven different quarterbacks received votes, with Sellers (8) edging out LSU's Garrett Nussmeier (7). Both players and their teams have struggled this season. Others receiving votes in the first QB1 poll were Miami's Carson Bec k (3), Mateer (3), Penn State's Drew Allar (2), Arizona State's Sam Leavitt (1) and Texas' Arch Manning (1). The sentiment regarding the class has soured a bit since the initial polling. Along with the dip in play from Sellers and Nussmeier, Allar suffer ed a season-ending injury and Manning hasn't resembled anything close to what his family and recruiting pedigrees projected. While Mendoza is the top vote-getter, he has yet to establish himself as a no-brainer No. 1 overall pick. He is trending that way , but there is not yet conviction behind those projections. - Pete Thamel, ESPN College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: Pete Thamel, ESPN College Football
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Fernando Mendoza threw for a touchdown and ran for one, and No. 2 Indiana remained undefeated with a 55-10 rout of Maryland on Saturday. Mendoza recovered from an early interception, and he also had to play most of the game without his top target. Star r eceiver Elijah Sarratt left in the first quarter with hamstring tightness, ending his nation-leading streak of 46 consecutive games with a catch. Still, this was another one-sided game for the Hoosiers (9-0, 6-0 Big Ten), who since winning at Oregon have added victories over Michigan State, UCLA and Maryland by a combined 120 points. Indiana outrushed Maryland 367-37. "It seemed like they wanted to take away our pass game, take away our RPO game," Mendoza said. "They gave a lot of depth on all the pass concepts we threw at them, and that opened up the run game." The Terrapins (4-4, 1-4) lost their fourth straight.They had a chance to make it interesting early, intercepting Mendoza on the first drive and taking over at the Indiana 12-yard line. M aryland managed only a field goal out of that, and after forcing a three-and-out and again getting the ball in Hoosiers territory, the Terps failed to score at all. "The defense has all year long risen to the occasion when their backs are against the wal l," Hoosiers coach Curt Cignetti said. "It wasn't perfect tonight defensively, trust me. Open-field tackling wasn't very good, they had some explosive plays. But there's a lot of good things that are on tape." Mendoza scored on a 7-yard run before the fi rst quarter was over, and his 22-yard scoring pass to Omar Cooper Jr. made it 17-3. It was 20-3 at halftime. - Indiana/AP College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: Indiana/AP College Football
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Fernando Mendoza had the stadium chanting "Heismendoza" Saturday as the Indiana quarterback threw for three touchdowns and ran one in to score, leading the Hoosiers to a 56-6 win over UCLA. Mendoza's 24 passing touchdowns tie him for first in the FBS. Hi s odds of winning the most prestigious award in college football have skyrocketed throughout the season, improving from +5500 to +350, tied with Alabama's Ty Simpson. - AP College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: AP College Football
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Fernando Mendoza completed 24 of 28 passes for 332 yards and four touchdowns and No. 3 Indiana celebrated its highest ranking in program history with a 38-13 rout of Michigan State on Saturday. The Hoosiers (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten), who have won all but one ga me by double digits, kept pace with No. 1 Ohio State atop the conference standings with touchdowns on their first five possessions. Mendoza threw a pair of TD passes to Elijah Sarratt, and also hit E.J. Williams Jr. and Omar Cooper Jr. for scores. "This is the sharpest we've seen him up to this point in a game," Indiana coach Curt Cignetti said of Mendoza. "And he continues to improve. He continues to prepare like nobody I've ever been around. He's getting better and better." Sarratt's first touchdown o n a 24-yard play put Indiana ahead 14-10 in the second quarter. His 27-yard TD reception gave the Hoosiers a 35-10 lead in the third quarter.Mendoza praised a shirtless, towel-waving student section for pushing his candidacy for the Heisman Trophy . "That was fantastic to see that. What a great sight to see," he said. "We do have a lot of season left. We have so many great players on our team. Whatever spotlight that I might get for the offensive success, I try to dish it out to my teammates." Men doza, a redshirt junior transfer, has 21 TD passes and just two interceptions this season. "He keeps building on his previous performances," Cignetti said. "I can't say enough good things about him." Cooper finished with eight receptions for 115 yards. K aelon Black added a 29-yard TD rush. Cignetti was concerned about how his Hoosiers would respond after last week's 30-20 win at then-No. 2 Oregon. "Look, you can't be a real nice guy when you have a job like mine," he said. "Human nature after a win agai nst Oregon is to be happy and relax, the support staff, coaches, players, trainers. So my job is to make sure they've got the right mindset and are ready to play...We've got to get better from this last game because the challenges are going to get toughe r down the road." - Indiana/AP College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: Indiana/AP College Football
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Curt Cignetti's new deal shows Indiana isn't content with being known as just a basketball school. Indiana announced a new eight-year contract with its football coach worth at least $92.8 million on Thursday, rewarding him for pushing the Hoosiers into n ational championship contention in just two seasons. The school said the average annual compensation for Cignetti will be approximately $11.6 million - a massive amount in a world of programs navigating financial challenges in the world of name, image an d likeness. The deal runs through Nov. 30, 2033 "At Indiana University, we are committed to performing at the highest levels in everything we do, and no one has exemplified that more than Coach Cignetti," Indiana University President Pamela Whitten said. "Put simply, Cig is a winner." The Hoosiers might have been trying to get ahead of possible suitors.Penn State, UCLA, Arkansas and Oklahoma State are among the schools that have already fired their coaches this season. Cignetti talked big when he arrived, and he has backed it up. He is 17-2 since arriving from James Madison, with his only losses coming last year against Ohio State and Notre Dame teams that ended up in the College Football Playoff championship game. He led the Hoosiers to the Col lege Football Playoff for the first time and was rewarded by being named AP Coach of the Year last season. Cignetti's biggest win yet came last week, when the seventh-ranked Hoosiers won 30-20 at No. 3 Oregon on Saturday. It ended the FBS' longest regula r-season win streak at 23 games and Oregon's 18-game home winning streak. It was Indiana's first victory against a top-five team since 1967. Now, the Hoosiers (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten) have a No. 3 national ranking - the highest in program history. Cignetti cho se not to make too big a deal about the victory. - AP College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: AP College Football
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MIDSEASON AP TOP OFFENSIVE PLAYER AND TOP FIRST-YEAR BIG TEN TRANSFER: Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza swept the two awards for his prolific production since transferring from California. His 17 touchdown passes lead the conference and are fourth na tionally, and he's averaging an impressive 9.3 yards per attempt. He has the third-highest passer rating in the Big Ten and fourth-highest in the country. - AP College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: AP College Football
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Indiana was the surprise of the 2024 college football season, and the question entering 2025 was whether the Hoosiers would backslide in Curt Cignetti's second season. So far, the answer is a resounding no. The Hoosiers came off their College Football Pl ayoff appearance by startting 6-0 and, at No. 3 following their 30-20 road win over then-No. 3 Oregon, have their highest AP Top 25 ranking in history. A top-four playoff seed, and an accompanying first-round bye, are real possibilities. For all that, 10 AP writers who cover the Big Ten made Cignetti the unanimous choice for top coach in the conference at the midway point of the season. Cignetti is 17-2 since arriving from James Madison, his only losses coming last year against Ohio State and Notre Dame teams that ended up in the CFP championship game. The Hoosiers returned four starters on offense and four on defense, brought in 23 transfers including quarterback Fernando Mendoza and picked up where they left off. - AP College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: AP College Football
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Indiana climbed to No. 3 in college football's AP Top 25 poll, scoring its highest ranking in poll history. The Hoosiers can thank their 10-point win at Oregon for the four-spot promotion, while the Ducks dropped five spots to No. 8, their lowest ranking in 20 polls. Ohio State and Miami remained the top two teams. No. 4 Texas A&M and No. 5 Mississippi traded places after the Aggies' 17-point home win over Florida and the Rebels' three-point home win over Washington State.The slew of Week 7 losse s by ranked teams also made room for five arrivals in the poll, including No. 20 USC and No. 21 Texas. The Longhorns were the preseason No. 1 team, but dropped out of the rankings last week after losses to Ohio State and Florida. With five teams - Michig an, Illinois, Arizona State, Iowa State and Florida State - dropping out, it was the most turnover in a regular-season poll since October 2022. - AP College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: AP College Football
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Fernando Mendoza threw for 215 yards and a key fourth-quarter touchdown and No. 7 Indiana remained undefeated with a 30-20 victory over No. 3 Oregon on Saturday. Roman Hemby added a pair of scoring runs for the Hoosiers (6-0, 3-0 Big Ten), who frustrated the Ducks (5-1, 2-1) with stout defensive play. Dante Moore threw for 186 yards and a touchdown for Oregon. He had two interceptions and was sacked six times. With Oregon down 20-13 going into the fourth quarter, Brandon Finney intercepted Mendoza's and ran it back 35 yards to tie it with 12:42 left. Mendoza answered with an 8-yard scoring pass to Elijah Sarratt with 6:23 to go. On Oregon's next series, Moore's pass was intercepted by Louis Moore. Brendan Franke added a 22-yard field goal for the Hoosi ers with 2:06 left.Both sides were coming off weeks off. In their last game, the Ducks beat Penn State 30-24 in double-overtime on the road in the annual White Out game. The Hoosiers beat Iowa 20-15 on the road. On the first series of the game, th e Ducks failed at a fourth-and-1 attempt, giving the Hoosiers good field position for their opening drive. It ended with Nico Radicic's 42-yard field goal. Oregon pulled ahead with Moore's 44-yard touchdown pass to Malik Benson but Hemby rushed for a 3-y ard touchdown before the end of the first quarter to make it 10-7. Atticus Sappington's 40-yard field goal tied it up for the Ducks, but a later 36-yard attempt that would have given Oregon the lead went wide left. Franke kicked a 58-yard field goal as t ime ran out to give Indiana a 13-10 advantage at the break. Sappington's 33-yard field goal in the third quarter tied it again for Oregon but Hemby added his second touchdown for the Hoosiers, a two-yard dash late in the period. - Indiana/AP College Foot ball
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: Indiana/AP College Football
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Fernando Mendoza threw a 49-yard touchdown pass to Elijah Sarratt with 1:28 to play to give No. 11 Indiana a 20-15 win over Iowa on Saturday. Mendoza connected with Sarratt, who had six catches for 132 yards, on a slant route down the left side and Sarra tt broke the tackle attempt of Iowa's Deshaun Lee on his way to the touchdown. Indiana (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten), which came into the game ranked second nationally in total offense and scoring offense, was held to 337 yards and its lowest scoring output of the season. But the Hoosiers got two touchdown passes from Mendoza, who threw for 233 yards, and two field goals from Nico Radicic. Iowa (3-2, 1-1) had a chance to break a 13-13 tie with 2:01 to play, but Drew Stevens missed a 42-yard field goal.After Indiana stopped Iowa on its final possession, Mendoza ran off the last seconds of the game by sprinting into the end zone, where he was tackled for a safety. Indiana took an early 7-0 lead. An interception by Amare Ferrell on the third offensive play of the game gave the Hoosiers the ball at Iowa's 24-yard line, and they quickly converted with Mendoza's 14-yard touchdown pass to Omar Cooper Jr. Stevens kicked 40-yard field goal later in the first quarter and the Hawkeyes took a 10-7 lead in the final m inute of the first half on Mark Gronowski's 3-yard touchdown run. The Hoosiers tied the game at 10 on Radicic's 46-yard field goal with three seconds left in the half. It was Iowa's 11th consecutive loss against a ranked opponent. - AP College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: AP College Football
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WEEK 4 BIG TEN CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Fernando Mendoza, Indiana, QB - Jr. - Miami, Fla. - Christopher Columbus,...Completed 21-of-23 passes for 267 yards and tied a career-high five passing touchdowns in a victory over No. 9/8 Illinois...Posted back-to-back games with five passing touchdowns to move his Big Ten-leading total to 14...Of his 21 completions, 14 went for either a first down or touchdown and finished the game with 15-straight completions...His .910 (21-for-23) completion percentage put him at No. 3 on the game completion percentage charts just a week after setting the program's record of .950 (19-for-20) in Week 3 against Indiana State (9/12)...Last Indiana Offensive Player of the Week: Omar Cooper Jr. (Sept. 15, 2025). - Big Ten Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: Big Ten Football
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WEEK 4 AP NATIONAL FBS OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Fernando Mendoza, Indiana,...The California transfer threw five touchdown passes for the second straight week and completed his final 17 throws in a 63-10 beat-down of Illinois. Mendoza connected on be tter than 90% of his passes for a second game in a row, going 21 of 23 for 267 yards. He was 19 of 20 against Indiana State in his previous game. His 76.8% accuracy rate through four games is second nationally, and his 14 TD passes lead the country. He h as thrown no interceptions. Mendoza led the Hoosiers to touchdowns on six straight possessions against the Illini before he turned things over to his younger brother, backup Alberto Mendoza, in the fourth quarter. - AP College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: AP College Football
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In a battle between No. 17 Indiana and No. 8 Illinois, it was the Hoosiers who showed the nation who the better team was. Indiana dominated the game from start to finish, scoring the most points any Big Ten team has ever scored against a top 10 opponent, routing the Illini 63-10. The victory moved the Hoosiers up five spots to No. 12 in this week's US LBM Coaches Poll, while Illinois dropped to No. 23. The top five remain the same with Ohio State, Penn State, Georgia, LSU and Oregon. Miami (Fla.) and Te xas stay at the sixth and seventh spots, with Florida State, Texas A&M and Oklahoma rising a couple of spots, thanks to Illinois' loss, to round out the top 10. - American Football Coaches Association
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: American Football Coaches Association
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Fernando Mendoza threw five touchdown passes and D'Angelo Ponds scooped up the punt he blocked and returned it 11 yards for a score Saturday night, leading No. 19 Indiana past No. 9 Illinois 63-10 for its first win over a top 10 foe in five years - and e asily the most lopsided. Indiana's previous best was a 31-10 victory at then No. 9 Ohio State in 1987. It marked the first time since 1950 the Hoosiers and Fighting Illini squared off with each ranked. Ponds' blocked punt return opened the scoring, and M endoza went 21 of 23 with 267 yards to become the first Hoosiers player with multiple games of five or more TD passes in three quarters. He also completed his final 17 passes as Indiana (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) extended its school record home winning streak to 12, all coming under second-year coach Curt Cignetti. "We'll get people's attention with this one," Cignetti said. "The team really laid it on the line tonight. There's nothing better than being the Grinch in the second half with a big lead. I love that feeling." Elijah Sarratt caught nine passes for 92 yards and two scores while Omar Cooper Jr. had six receptions for 78 yards and one TD.Khobe Martin rushed for 107 yards and two TDs and Kaelon Black added 89 yards rushing and one TD. The Fightin g Illini offense struggled as quarterback Luke Altmeyer was under pressure all night. Illinois (3-1, 0-1) allowed five sacks and rushed for only 3 yards in the first half, falling into an insurmountable 35-10 deficit. Indiana sealed the win with TD drive s on each of its first two second-half possessions. It was the worst loss of coach Bret Bielema's tenure at Illinois. "We didn't respoind to any adversity. It started with the blocked punt and never really got anything on offense or defense," Bielema sai d. "Embarrassing and at a loss for words." Altmeyer was 14 of 22 with 146 yards and one interception while being sacked seven times. Receiver Hank Beatty was limited to two catches for 13 yards and Illinois' only meaningful scores came on a 59-yard TD pa ss from Altmeyer to Collin Dixon in the first quarter and a 46-yard field goal to close the half. - Indiana/AP College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: Indiana/AP College Football
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Fernando Mendoza threw five first-half touchdown passes, Omar Cooper Jr. tied an Indiana record with four TD receptions and the No. 22 Hoosiers routed Indiana State 73-0 on Friday night. Indiana (3-0) allowed only 77 yards in its largest shutout victory since a 78-0 romp over Franklin on Oct. 19, 1901. "Our team took another step, especially our offense," Mendoza said. "It was touchdowns galore." The Hoosiers jumped out with three first-quarter scores against their outmanned Football Championship Subdiv ision foes, with Mendoza scoring on a 7-yard run and throwing two 13-yard TD passes to Cooper. Mendoza then connected with Holden Staes from 18 yards out, hit Jonathan Brady on a 4-yarder and added a 31-yarder to Cooper in the second quarter.Coope r had 58-yard TD catch from Mendoza's brother, Alberto, in the third quarter to finish with 10 catches for 207 yards. He tied James Hardy's 2006 record for TD catches in a game. Mendoza, a California transfer, completed his first 14 passes. He finished 1 9 of 20 for 270 yards, and did not play in the second half. "We did tonight what we wanted to do," Indiana coach Curt Cignetti said. "I was pleased about that. I didn't see anybody relaxing at any point in the game, coaches or players." The Sycamores (2- 1) had just five first downs. Indiana State's Keegan Patterson completed 8 of 16 passes for 13 yards before being replaced late in the third quarter. He was sacked four times. "We couldn't get anything going," Indiana State coach Curt Mallory said. "We c ouldn't stop them on drives. They converted early and we couldn't stop ‘em after that." - Indiana/AP College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: Indiana/AP College Football
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Fernando Mendoza threw for four touchdowns to lead No. 23 Indiana to a 56-9 rout of Kennesaw State on Saturday. Mendoza, a transfer from University of California, completed 18 of 25 passes for 245 yards. He threw scoring passes of 3, 9 and 20 yards to El ijah Sarratt and an 8-yard strike to E.J. Williams early in the fourth quarter. The Hoosiers held the Owls to two field goals in the first half and led 21-6 at the break. Kennesaw State's Daniel Kinney finished with field goals of 28, 29 and 50 yards. In diana scored on a 1-yard run by Riley Nowakowski and an 11-yard run by Lee Beebe Jr. in the first half to go with the first of Sarratt's TD catches. Beebe finished with a team-best 90 rushing yards on 11 carries. - Indiana/AP College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: Indiana/AP College Football
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Fernando Mendoza scored on a 5-yard run in his debut as Indiana's quarterback, Jonathan Brady returned a punt 91 yards for a score, and the 20th-ranked Hoosiers wore down Old Dominion in a season-opening 27-14 victory on Saturday. Mendoza, the starter at California last season, finished 18 of 31 for 193 yards and ran six times for 34 yards. His TD run late in the first half gave the Hoosiers a 17-7 lead. Indiana's 309-yard rushing attack was led by Maryland transfer Roman Hemby, who had 23 carries for 1 10 yards. Kaelon Black added 92 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries.Indiana won its ninth straight home game to improve to 9-0 at Memorial Stadium under second-year coach Curt Cignetti - but not without some stress. Old Dominion started fast, with quarterback Colton Joseph faking out the Hoosiers' defense on the first offensive play of the game and sprinting 75 yards for a TD, and the Monarchs controlled most of the first quarter. Brady's punt return tied the game with 9 seconds left in the perio d. Joseph added a 78-yard TD run midway through the fourth quarter that got ODU within 27-14. He finished with a career-high 179 yards rushing on 10 carries and went 11 of 22 through the air for 96 yards and three interceptions. But the Monarchs couldn't get the late stop they needed to make it a one-possession game. Indiana scored just 20 points - two touchdowns and two field goals - on six trips inside the Old Dominion 10-yard line. The Hoosiers turned it over on downs the other two times. - Indiana/A P College Football
(DS#1 QB) rJr/2026 QB Fernando Mendoza, Indiana
News Source: Indiana/AP College Football
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