As one of the Heisman Trophy frontrunners and the quarterback of one of the two undefeated teams remaining in college football, it's no wonder that Indiana's Fernando Mendoza has received a lot of national attention ahead of the Hoosiers' appearance in the Big Ten Championship.
However, it was slightly surprising when Mendoza received praise from one of the defensive ends for his upcoming opponent.
Mendoza and the No. 2 Hoosiers are about to take on the No. 1 Ohio State Buckeyes in the conference title game. Just a couple of days before kick off, defensive end and sack machine Kenyatta Jackson Jr. had a handful of nice things to say about the quarterback.
Ohio State knows what's coming with Fernando Mendoza
"He's pretty athletic," Jackson said. "He [doesn't] really show it against other opponents, but when he shows it, he's pretty athletic when he moves."
Mendoza is far from a dual-threat quarterback, only earning 243 rushing yards throughout the regular season. However, once Indiana gets closer to the goal line, he is consistently the go-to guy, scoring six touchdowns on the ground.
Kenyatta Jackson Jr. on Fernando Mendoza. pic.twitter.com/5d5vVQXDZY
— Lantern Sports (@LanternSports) December 4, 2025
While he's great at the goal line, the biggest threat that Mendoza presents is undeniably his arm. Through the first 12 games of the season, he earned 2,758 passing yards on 211 completions (72 percent) for 32 touchdowns and just five interceptions.
He has been one of the most consistent and reliable quarterbacks in the nation, alongside Ohio State's own quarterback, Julian Sayin.
For reference, Jackson has already earned 24 total tackles (15 solo), 5.5 sacks, and two pass deflections. Simply put, he's a monster at the line of scrimmage and Mendoza needs to be wary of him and the rest of the Ohio State pass rushers.
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When the top two teams in the country clash in the Big Ten Championship game, it will be one last chance for Mendoza to cement himself as a Heisman frontrunner and possibly hand the Buckeyes their first loss of the year.
No. 1 Ohio State and No. 2 Indiana are scheduled to kick off at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday, Dec. 4, and the game will be broadcast on FOX.