How Fernando Mendoza Broke Heisman Trophy Curse, Led Indiana Football to CFP Final

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Omar Cooper Jr. admits he's never heard of the Heisman Trophy curse, the ever-common team or player regression after winning college football's most prestigious award.

Indiana football quarterback Fernando Mendoza has given the Hoosiers' leading receiver no reason to familiarize himself with it.

Through two College Football Playoff games since winning the Heisman Trophy on Dec. 13, Mendoza has diced No. 9 Alabama and No. 5 Oregon to the tune of eight touchdowns and only five incompletions. He's 31-for-36 passing for 369 yards while the Hoosiers have won by 69 combined points.

"It just comes to show why he won Heisman," Cooper told Indiana Hoosiers On SI after the Peach Bowl. "He's the best quarterback in college football right now. He deserves it, man. Obviously, he works hard, he studies hard, and he knows what's coming when it comes to the defense.

"So, that's what helps him be able to be the quarterback he is."

Since the start of the College Football Playoff in 2014, only one Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback has won the national championship: LSU's Joe Burrow in 2019. Two others — Marcus Mariota in 2014 and Bryce Young in 2021 — made the national title game but lost, while Baker Mayfield in 2017 and Kyler Murray in 2018 each lost their first-round Playoff game.

It's worth noting Alabama receiver DeVonta Smith won the Heisman Trophy and the national championship during 2020, and Alabama running back Derrick Henry did the same in 2015.

Historically, however, Heisman Trophy winners were only 35-34 in postseason games before Mendoza's 2-0 start to begin the College Football Playoff.

But the Hoosiers never had any worries Mendoza would fall victim to the same horrors as many of those before him. Sixth-year senior tight end Riley Nowakowski joked Indiana gave Mendoza "a tough time" to keep him level-headed, though Cooper said he knew the moment Mendoza returned to Memorial Stadium the New York City lights didn't change him.

"The day we got back, we had a lift, and he was there. He came, brought the trophy, and let other people take pictures with it," Cooper said. "And I was like, ‘Oh, he really does this for the team. He really is a really good guy.’ That's just showing he's here for us and just wants to be the best he can be."

Mendoza's attitude on that front hasn't changed from the beginning. He committed to Indiana not solely because of the Hoosiers' 11-2 record last season nor any NIL commitments, though both factors may have played a role.

Instead, Indiana coach Curt Cignetti sold Mendoza on person growth. Together, they've reached historic Hoosier heights.

"Coach Cignetti said, 'Hey, if you're going to come here, you're going to develop into a hell of a quarterback,'" Mendoza recalled. "And it wasn't about, at that point, 'Hey, I'm going to promise you a National Championship.' It was, 'You're going to develop.'"

Mendoza's ascent to the Heisman Trophy, along with the right to break the Heisman curse, started bumpy. During spring practice, he questioned whether Indiana's defense was merely really good — the Hoosiers rank top 10 nationally in total defense and scoring — or if he wasn't as good as he thought.

After Indiana's second scrimmage during fall camp, Cignetti thought the Hoosiers may have to lean heavily on the run game. Then, Mendoza flipped a switch over the final two weeks of fall practice.

But the momentum didn't initially carry into the regular season. Mendoza went 18-for-31 passing for 193 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions in the Hoosiers' 27-14 season-opening win over Old Dominion on Aug. 30.

Mendoza feels he's "come a long way" from that sunny Saturday afternoon in Bloomington.

"I was trying to be Superman," Mendoza said. "And then the coaching staff settled me down and was like, 'Hey, you don't got to be Superman. We have a great defense and great superstars, playmakers and offense, so just do your job.' My job is to be effective with making really accurate balls and really great decisions, and that's what I pride myself on every single play."

The 6-foot-5, 225-pound Mendoza may not be Superman, but he was Mr. Incredible against Oregon. He went 17-for-20 passing for 177 yards and five touchdowns, the fifth time this season he's recorded more touchdowns than incomplete passes.

Mendoza hit four different receivers for touchdowns in Cooper, seniors Elijah Sarratt and E.J. Williams Jr. and sophomore Charlie Becker.

"I thought he was incredible," Cignetti said postgame about Mendoza. "He was great. I also thought our receivers made some nice contested catches. I thought Sarratt was on fire. Charlie Becker made some big plays. EJ and Cooper got in the act as well. And when it wasn't there, Fernando used his legs.

"I mean, he was on top of the game, and it was a huge difference his performance in this football game."

Cignetti and Mendoza don't heavily talk every day. Indiana quarterbacks coach Chandler Whitmer and strength and conditioning coach Derek Owings have more day-in, day-out involvement with Mendoza, Cignetti said.

When Mendoza talks with Cignetti, the conversations are often "pretty short" in Cignetti's assessment. Mendoza doesn't talk much in the building or on the practice field, and he's not a vocal individual, Cignetti said.

But turn on a camera and interview Mendoza during the week or after a game, and Cignetti says viewers get a full taste of Mendoza's personality — best displayed by his "A-plus" work behind the microphone.

After the Hoosiers' 34-point win over Oregon, after he threw for five touchdowns, after he secured a spot in the national title game in his hometown, Mendoza had plenty of opportunities to speak. His longest postgame answer came to a question about his own performance, and he spent much of it deflecting attention.

Mendoza touted the Hoosiers' receivers for making contested catches and creating separation. He compared himself to a point guard surrounded by an abundance of 3-point shooters; he gets the glory and fame, he says, but his teammates are the ones who make the shots.

Then, Mendoza transitioned into constructive criticism. Though the scoreboard may not show it, he said he had "a lot" to improve upon. There were footwork mistakes here, a missed check there, one inaccurate pass he'd like to have back.

Team-first? Check. Never satisfied? Certainly. It's no wonder Mendoza passes Cignetti's media test with flying colors.

But Mendoza also aced Cignetti's on-field exam Friday night in Atlanta — and continued proving the Heisman Trophy wasn't merely the end of one chapter but a springboard to another.

"Even since the Heisman Trophy, he's upped his level of play," Cignetti said. "He's a special guy. He's extremely intelligent, and people recognize that. He says the right things, and he'll be really successful one day when football ends, whatever he chooses to do.

"He's just done a tremendous job. In every single area where you could impact team success, he's been front and center."

Cignetti said Mendoza has a strong relationship with his teammates. There are things he does behind the scenes to bring the offense even closer, such as dinner nights, that Cignetti shared aren't brought to his attention until later.

When Mendoza speaks, his teammates listen. Though he's yet to be a game captain, he's emerged as one of the Hoosiers' most prominent leaders. His most powerful message comes each time he takes the field for the Cream and Crimson.

"I can tell you this, the best way to lead a team is to perform well, especially at the quarterback position," Cignetti said. "I've never tried to, like, make that guy the leader in spring ball because his performance will speak for itself. And he is highly, highly respected in the locker room. The way he's played speaks for itself."

Now, Mendoza prepares for the biggest game of his life and the most special of homecomings. No. 1 Indiana (15-0) will face No. 10 Miami (13-2) at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 19 inside Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.

Mendoza grew up less than a mile away from Hard Rock. He's biked through Miami's campus and participated in recreational basketball during the offseason, but he never played in the Dolphins' home facility.

Playing before friends and family aside, Mendoza will carry weight on his shoulders. Weight from his own personal standard. Weight from the Heisman Trophy. Weight from Bloomington's burning desire to welcome its first national championship trophy.

Perhaps earlier this season, the pressure would've weighed down Mendoza. But he now knows he needn't be Superman — only himself. Past results, he said, don't matter. Winning the national title is all that does.

There will be no dwelling, no relishing, no reminiscing upon past successes. There's merely an interest in continuing to grow within the framework of Cignetti's promise — and be "a hell of a quarterback" on the sport's biggest stage.

"I don't think there's any time to celebrate," Mendoza said, "because this is what everybody dreams of, and I'm going to put every ounce of my body into preparation going into the next game."