| No. 15 – Indiana Hoosiers | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Quarterback | ||||||||||||||||
| Class |  | ||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
| Born | October 1, 2003 Miami, Florida, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 225 lb (102 kg) | ||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||
| High school | Christopher Columbus (Miami) | ||||||||||||||||
| College |
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| Career statistics as of Week 12, 2025 | |||||||||||||||||
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| Stats at ESPN | |||||||||||||||||
Fernando Mendoza V [1] (born October 1, 2003) is a Cuban-American college football quarterback for the Indiana Hoosiers. He previously played for the California Golden Bears.
Mendoza was born October 1, 2003, in Miami, Florida, as the grandson of Cuban immigrants. [1] He attended Christopher Columbus High School in Miami. As a quarterback on the football team, Mendoza completed 133 of his 203 pass attempts for 1,396 yards and 16 touchdowns with four interceptions, while also adding 137 yards and a touchdown on the ground. [2] He originally committed to play college football at Yale University before deciding to flip to the University of California, Berkeley. [3]
Mendoza redshirted during the 2022 season.
Mendoza earned his first career start in week 6 of the 2023 season against Oregon State. [4] He completed 21 of 32 pass attempts for 207 yards and two touchdowns with an interception in a loss to the Beavers. [5] The following week, Mendoza went 10 of 17 passing for 149 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in a loss to Utah. [6] Mendoza was named the team's starting quarterback heading forward. [7] [8] In eight starts as a redshirt freshman, Mendoza 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. [9]
Entering the 2024 season, Mendoza won the starting quarterback job for Cal, beating graduate transfer Chandler Rogers. [10] In Week 2 against Auburn, Mendoza completed 25 of 36 passes for 233 yards and two touchdowns, leading the Bears to an upset win over the Tigers. [11] 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 Cal quarterback since 2016. On December 11, 2024, Mendoza announced he would be entering the transfer portal. [12]
On December 23, 2024, Mendoza announced he would transfer to Indiana. [13]
| Season | Team | Games | Passing | Rushing | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Y/A | TD | Int | Rtg | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | ||
| 2022 | California | Redshirt | ||||||||||||||
| 2023 | California | 9 | 8 | 3−5 | 153 | 243 | 63.0 | 1,708 | 7.0 | 14 | 10 | 132.8 | 48 | 92 | 1.9 | 2 |
| 2024 | California | 11 | 11 | 6−5 | 265 | 386 | 68.7 | 3,004 | 7.8 | 16 | 4 | 144.6 | 87 | 105 | 1.2 | 2 |
| 2025 | Indiana | 11 | 11 | 11−0 | 203 | 278 | 73.0 | 2,641 | 9.5 | 30 | 5 | 184.8 | 62 | 216 | 3.5 | 5 |
| Career | 31 | 30 | 20–10 | 621 | 907 | 68.5 | 7,353 | 8.1 | 60 | 21 | 153.8 | 197 | 413 | 2.1 | 9 | |
Mendoza has a younger brother, Alberto, who serves as backup quarterback behind him for Indiana. [14] [15]