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Tom Brady Named the One Thing He Loves the Most About Heisman Winner Fernando Mendoza

Liam McKeone

Tom Brady is a fan of Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza’s leadership.
Tom Brady is a fan of Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza’s leadership. / NFL on Fo
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On Saturday night Fernando Mendoza made history by becoming the first Indiana player to win the Heisman Trophy. The star quarterback beat out several deserving candidates to win college football’s most prestigious award. It’ll be remembered in the record books no matter how Mendoza’s foray into the College Football Playoff with the Hoosiers unfolds.

In the meantime, before the CFP really gets underway, the NFL world is already turning its eyes towards next year’s draft and where Mendoza might land. Discussing the topic on Fox NFL Sunday ahead of Week 15 play, Tom Brady was brought in to offer his thoughts on the Indiana quarterback. Brady pointed to one intangible aspect of Mendoza’s game as the thing that stands out most about the young signal-caller.

MORE: Diego Pavia Ripped Heisman Voters After Finishing Second

“His leadership is what stands out to me,” Brady revealed after stating he loves “everything” about Mendoza’s game. “It’s his relatability to his teammates. He’s overcome a lot of things in his career. He’s a Miami kid, went to Cal, to Indiana. And then you go to a program that hasn’t won anything in forever. What he’s done this season is so impressive.”

Brady knows a thing or two about what it takes to successfully play quarterback so for him to highlight an off-field quality above anything else is quite interesting. And something many, more casual fans would likely agree with. Mendoza proved last year he could excel on the field but his personality has really shone throughout this year’s Heisman process. And one need look no further for evidence of how well he’s regarded by his teammates than the video that emerged on Saturday night of his fellow Hoosiers mobbing Mendoza at the press conference following his Heisman Trophy win.

Arm strength and accuracy and mobility and all those factors are critical when it comes to being a successful quarterback. But the NFL has seen many prospects with all the physical talent in the world fail because of off-field issues. Brady clearly believes whatever team lands Mendoza at the NFL level will be getting a great leader who’s been through plenty of adversity in his career so far—just as important as the Big Ten title he led Indiana to this year.

A great few days for Mendoza, that’s for sure. A Heisman Trophy victory followed by Tom Brady praise? It doesn’t get much better for a young quarterback.

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Liam McKeone
LIAM MCKEONE

Liam McKeone is a senior writer for the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has been in the industry as a content creator since 2017, and prior to joining SI in May 2024, McKeone worked for NBC Sports Boston and The Big Lead. In addition to his work as a writer, he has hosted the Press Pass Podcast covering sports media and The Big Stream covering pop culture. A graduate of Fordham University, he is always up for a good debate and enjoys loudly arguing about sports, rap music, books and video games. McKeone has been a member of the National Sports Media Association since 2020.

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