Fresh off the Indiana Hoosiers 53-point domination of the ninth-ranked Illinois Fighting Illini, junior quarterback Fernando Mendoza made his national statement and now debut atop of the Heisman Trophy odds after Week 4 in college football. Mendoza had a damn near perfect day at quarterback, completing 21 of 23 passes for 267 yards and five touchdowns on Saturday night at Merchants Field in Memorial Stadium.
According to FanDuel Sportsbook's latest betting odds, Mendoza is the current Heisman favorite at +800 odds to win. Other services such as DraftKings and BetMGM have Mendoza as the second-highest favorite to win the Heisman at +950 and +900 odds.
Other Heisman Trophy front runners and contenders include Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer at (+900), Carson Beck, Miami Hurricanes (+1300), Dante Moore, Oregon Ducks (+1300), Gunner Stockton, Georgia Bulldogs (+1400), Josh Hoover, TCU Horned Frogs (+1400), Joey Aguilar, Tennessee Volunteers (+1400) and Marcel Reed, Texas A&M Aggies (+1500).
UPDATED Heisman Odds, via FanDuel:
— College Football Report (@CFBRep) September 21, 2025
Fernando Mendoza +800 🏆
John Mateer +900
Carson Beck +1300
Dante Moore +1300
Gunner Stockton +1400
Josh Hoover +1400
Joey Aguilar +1400
Marcel Reed +1500
Jeremiah Smith +1500
Julian Sayin +1600 pic.twitter.com/7E3kNgbPjX
In four games this season, Mendoza has completed 76.8 percent of passes for 975 yards, 14 touchdowns and zero interceptions. He's also added 76 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns.
Mendoza leads the nation in passing touchdowns and ranks second nationally in completion percentage and quarterback rating (206.2). Among Big Ten quarterbacks, only USC's Jayden Maiava has a higher quarterback rating while Ohio State's Julian Sayin has a higher completion percentage.
The 6-foot-5, 225-pound signal-caller compared to the other top two Heisman canidates has been overall better, though against a little less competitive competition. Carson Beck has thrown for 972 yards (73.2 completion percentage), seven touchdowns and three interceptions, while John Mateer has thrown for 1,215 yards (67.4 completion percentage), six touchdowns and three interceptions.
Beck and his Hurricanes have beaten Florida and Notre Dame at home, while Mateer and OU have beaten Auburn and Michigan at home. Indiana's only quality opponent this season has been No. 9, now (23) Illinois but the pure domination is alarming winning by 53 is a true statement.
Indiana takes on the Iowa Hawkeyes this weekend, traveling to Iowa City on Saturday at 2:30pm local kickoff time.
Full 2025 Heisman Trophy Odds
- Fernando Mendoza (Indiana): +800
- John Mateer (Oklahoma): +900
- Carson Beck (Miami): +1300
- Dante Moore (Oregon): +1300
- Gunner Stockton (Georgia): +1400
- Josh Hoover (TCU): +1400
- Joey Aguilar (Tennessee): +1400
- Marcel Reed (Texas A&M):+1500
- Jeremiah Smith (Ohio State): +1500
- Julian Sayin (Ohio State): +1700
- Thomas Castellanos (Florida State): +2000
- Garrett Nussmeier (LSU): +2000
- Jayden Maiava (USC): +2000
- Drew Allar (Penn State): +2500
- Haynes King (Georgia Tech): +2500
- Ty Simpson (Alabama): +2500
- Beau Pribula (Missouri): +3000
- Diego Pavia (Vanderbilt): +3500
- Jackson Arnold (Auburn): +4000
- Arch Manning (Texas): +4000
- Sam Leavitt (Arizona State): +4000
- Dylan Raiola (Nebraska): +5000
- Demond Williams Jr. (Washington): +5000
- Bryce Underwood (Michigan): +5000
- Behren Morton (Texas Tech): +5000
- Trinidad Chambliss (Ole Miss): +5000