It’s finally the weekend I’ve been waiting for all year.
This weekend, I have the absolute blessing and pleasure of being in New York City covering the 2025 Heisman Trophy Ceremony. For those wondering- yes, this Florida boy is absolutely freezing, but nevertheless, there’s a job at hand. During today’s open media scrum, I had the opportunity to catch up with the Sunshine State’s hometown hero- Fernando Mendoza.
We’ve all heard the story: Despite being a 3-Star recruit, Mendoza was an under-recruited QB prospect in the 2022 class hailing from Miami Columbus. As a high academic kid, Fernando was committed to Yale of the Ivy Leagues, before Cal Berkeley came calling just days before National Signing Day, and he’d eventually sign with the Golden Bears. After two seasons as the starter on the West Coast, Fernando entered his name in the Transfer Portal and took his talents to Bloomington, to become an Indiana Hoosier. In his redshirt junior campaign, Mendoza and IU lit up college football, winning the BIG-10 title and standing alone as the only team in the Country with a perfect record.
Now, that same under rated recruit from one of Dade County’s blue bloods is sitting atop the College Football world- ready to hear his name called for the game’s most prestigious award tomorrow night.
“It’s been such a great journey, especially being from Miami…If you were to tell my self, the kid from Miami struggling with football in the intense Miami football environment that I’d be a Heisman finalist today, I’d laugh.” Mendoza stated. “With the Miami community, with Christopher Columbus High School, and everybody else in Miami pushing and supporting, I’ve been able to elevate to this level, so I can’t thank Columbus High enough and all the support I have from Miami.”
Over the last few years, the Mendoza family has been fighting one of the hardest battles they’ve ever faced, as his mother Elsa was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). MS is a chronic autoimmune disease of the central nervous system where the immune system mistakenly attacks myelin, the protective sheath around nerve fibers, disrupting nerve signals. This damage slows or blocks messages between the brain and body, affecting functions like movement, sensation, and coordination.
The Mendoza family has paired their fight with the NIL era of college sports, as both Fernando and his brother Alberto have used their name, image and likeness to help the battle against MS. During his time at Berkley, Fernando paired with a local burrito shop near campus to build a meal based on his Cuban heritage where all proceeds went to the National MS Society. After Indiana defeated Ohio State in the Big10 title game, the Mendoza family’s initial fundraiser for MS research skyrocketed, blowing the original $50K goal out of the water, now standing at over $63.5K and counting.
This afternoon, Fernando had nothing but admiration and appreciation for the gracious fans across the country for their generosity.
“It’s been heartwarming. That’s something my teammates have seen and my family has really seen and appreciated.” Mendoza said with a smile. “To know the fight that my mom- who’s my light, my why, she’s my everything- to see what she goes through and how augmented she is through it all. But at the same time, my mom doesn’t want anyone feeling sorry for her because she’s a warrior and she’s passionate. However, to raise that money for people in need- I believe it’s my platform, it’s the reason God put me here- to help others, and that’s my goal….Whether it’s the city of Bloomington Hoosier fans, I can’t thank you enough for all the donations. Nationwide donations, my personal contributions or my teammates contributions to that cause, it’s something I want to support the rest of my career.”
One of the last things I asked Fernando ended up perfectly encapsulating just who he is. Fernando was able to turn a light hearted question about who he’d co-star in a Heisman House commercial with into a faith proclamation, forever giving the glory to Jesus Christ his Lord and Savior.
“There’s so many legends before myself. Honestly as a Heisman Finalist, I know I get the opportunity to meet some of the Heisman Legends of the past.” Fernando said. “One that I always idolized was Tim Tebow. The way that he shows his Faith, and growing up in the State of Florida. Seeing him both be a great football player and a great man of God is something I idolized.”
The 2025 Heisman Trophy winner will be announced tomorrow night at approximately 8PM EST. Regardless of if he gets to give a heartwarming speech or not, this weekend was a win in Fernando Mendoza’s eyes:
“Regardless of what happens tomorrow night, I’m going to be leaving New York City with a big smile on my face. Coming home with this fantastic watch that I’ll be able to keep as a family heirloom, it will represent my time in college, my entire journey- whether its Christopher Columbus High School, Berkley or Bloomington.”
Attached to the bottom of this piece is the Mendoza Family fundraiser for Multiple Sclerosis research. If you or a loved one feel it in your hearts that you’d like to donate to an incredible cause- the link can be accessed HERE !
