Did a New QB Target For Stanford Just Enter the Portal?

Alberto Mendoza is in the transfer portal. Could Stanford try their hand to get him?

Jan 17, 2026; Miami, FL, USA; Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Alberto Mendoza (16) participates in a practice for the College Football Playoff National Championship game against the Miami Hurricanes. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

And just like that, the 2025 college football season is over, with the Indiana Hoosiers hoisting their first-ever national title trophy. It was a long season, but the focus now shifts to the offseason, where the teams that did not win a championship will work tirelessly to build rosters worthy of competing.

For a rebuilding team like the Stanford Cardinal, this offseason is especially vital. With new head coach Tavita Pritchard eager to get the Cardinal back to their winning ways, they'll need to make some big improvements to the roster to help them achieve those goals.

But in football, in order to win, it all starts at the sport's most important position: quarterback. Over the last few seasons, the Cardinal have been plagued by inconsistent quarterback play, a big reason why the program finished 3-9 in four straight seasons and 4-8 in 2025.

This year, the Cardinal are going to be hungry to figure out a solution at quarterback. And it is very possible that the solution could come in the form of Indiana backup quarterback, Alberto Mendoza.

The backup to his brother Fernando during the Hoosiers national title run, Mendoza announced after the game that he was entering the transfer portal, looking for an opportunity to start for his final three seasons of eligibility.

Appearing in only one game as a true freshman in 2024 before redshirting, Mendoza appeared in eight games this season in relief of his brother, finishing the year with 286 passing yards, five touchdowns and one interception.

Mendoza's departure is not considered a surprise considering that the Hoosiers signed former TCU starting quarterback, Josh Hoover, making Mendoza's chance to start for Indiana in 2026 an uphill battle from the beginning.

But given his talent and how he has spent the last couple of seasons developing under Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti, Mendoza should have plenty of suitors in the portal that will give him a shot to compete for the starting job, with schools such as Georgia Tech and Duke already linked to him.

But Stanford could be a major sleeper school. Despite signing Davis Warren from Michigan, the Cardinal also lost quarterback Elijah Brown to the transfer portal, and have some freshman coming in that have yet to take a college football snap.

Right now, Warren is the frontrunner to start for Stanford in 2026, but given his limited time and inconsistencies as a starter, it would be wise for Stanford to look into signing another quarterback.

In the midst of a long rebuild, bringing in Mendoza would give the Cardinal a player with a championship mentality, knowing what it takes to go all the way.

The Cardinal are a ways away from being national title contenders, but having a guy like Mendoza who has been there and who will be around for a while could expedite the rebuild and produce some surprising results in Pritchard's first year in charge.

The deadline for players to put their name in the transfer portal was Jan. 16 for teams that did not make the College Football Playoff but for Indiana, they have until Jan. 24, a special deadline granted by the NCAA for teams that advanced further in the CFP. That gives Stanford plenty of time to figure out how they want to proceed with a guy like Mendoza.