Fernando Mendoza is set for a busy offseason as the Hoosiers quarterback could be racking up all kinds of honors from the Heisman Trophy to player of the year awards. He has officially earned his first one with the AP handing out their postseason awards.
The AP has named Mendoza the College Football Player of the Year, the biggest honor among their player awards. It makes sense that Mendoza won the award, especially leading his team to the only undefeated record in college football and to the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.
The @AP College Football Player of the Year. pic.twitter.com/PaRjBhQ15U
— Indiana Football (@IndianaFootball) December 11, 2025
This is a huge honor for the Cal transfer, who has just completed his first regular season with the Hoosiers. Not only did Indiana finish as the only undefeated team, but they also were able to seal it with a huge win in the Big Ten Championship over Ohio State.
Mendoza has been the catalyst who has taken Indian to that next level. While Mendoza has fewer passing yards at this point than he did last season, he is still playing the best football of his career. Indiana has huge leads sometimes by the end of the fourth quarter, and was able to pull Mendoza to save him from injury.
So far, Mendoza has 2,980 passing yards and 33 passing touchdowns. He has only turned the ball over six times and has a top completion rate of 71.5%. Mendoza has also been a big threat with his legs, with 240 rushing yards and six rushing touchdowns, making him a true dual-threat quarterback.
Mendoza has the chance to rack up a lot of awards this postseason, the next one being the biggest. The Florida native was recently named one of four finalists for the Heisman Trophy along with Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin, Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia, and Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love.
The Heisman Trophy will be awarded on Saturday, December 13 at 7:00 p.m. on ABC.