MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Fernando Mendoza met with the media Saturday morning at Hard Rock Stadium, 22 miles north of where he attended high school. It was at Christopher Columbus High where the Indiana quarterback threw for 2,222 yards and 29 touchdowns in three years, the last two as coach Dave Dunn’s starter.
“The Columbus brotherhood made me who I am, not only as a player, but also (my) character and as a teammate,” said the Miami native, who also lettered in tennis. “I really can’t thank Christopher Columbus enough. It’s really special I get to play in Miami where Christopher Columbus is located and in front of all my Columbus brothers.”
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Mendoza, whose grandparents immigrated from Cuba to Miami, is back home and on the grandest of stages playing for a national championship. The Heisman winner will not be lacking for support at Hard Rock on Monday evening.
“I think that I’m really looking forward to playing in Miami, especially with a lot of family and people who (poured a lot into me) and (helped) get myself to this point in my journey,” he said.
It has been a remarkable playoff for the quarterback on the back end of what has been a remarkable run for the Hoosiers (15-0) since they kicked off the 2025 season nearly five months ago. In convincing wins over Alabama (38-3) in the CFP quarterfinal and Oregon (56-22) in the semifinal, Mendoza combined to complete a remarkable 86 percent (31-of-36) of his passes for 369 yards with eight touchdowns and no interceptions. That’s right: more TD passes than incompletions.
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It is a near-perfect sample of what has impressed another Christopher Columbus alum, Miami coach Mario Cristobal, a high school teammate of Mendoza’s father, also named Fernando.
“Decisive, accurate, athletic, pocket presence, extending plays, can throw it on the run, in the pocket,” said Cristobal of Mendoza’s body of work. “There’s no fazing him. The more he gets hit, the tougher he gets, and it’s something that’s very admirable because a lot of quarterbacks can’t do that. So, he’s the total package.”
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