Cal QB Fernando Mendoza shines in defeat
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Carlos Leon-Trejo, Contributor
- October 14, 2024
Cal's Fernando Mendoza steady in defeat
Cal’s Fernando Mendoza is quietly becoming one of the best young quarterbacks in the country. In defeat the last two weeks, he has put a scare into a pair of undefeated, Top 25 teams.
The sophomore from Miami almost beat his hometown Hurricanes on Oct. 5. A week later, he had another impressive performance in the Golden Bears’ 17-15 loss against the 20th ranked Pitt.
Mendoza completed 27 of 37 attempts and threw for 272 yards with a touchdown. The 6-foot-5, 225-pound finished the game with a 73 percent completion rating. Despite the loss, the Cuban American Fernando Mendoza is Our Esquina’s Latino College Football Player of the Week for Week 7.
Mendoza has thrown for 1,449 yards and eight touchdowns already this season. He has also rushed for one touchdown. Cal is 0-3 in ACC play and 3-2 overall.
Fernando Mendoza keeps Cal competitive
That record isn’t indicative of how well Fernando Mendoza and the Bears have played this season.
Cal has lost its three ACC games by a combined eight points. The Bears lost 14-9 against Florida State. They had a 25-point lead before No. 6 Miami came from behind to win 39-38.
Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia pulled off an upset for the second week in a row. The graduate transfer from New Mexico State guided the Commodores to a 20-13 victory over Kentucky on the road.
Pavia completed 15 of 18 passes for 142 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. He also rushed for 53 yards on 14 carries. There weren’t many highlights for Stanford against Notre Dame, but sophomore Jshawn Frausto-Ramos forced a fumble in the 49-7 loss.
The sophomore from Los Angeles also led the Cardinal with seven tackles, five of them solo. Senior defensive tackle Gabriel Rubio returned to action for Notre Dame. The St. Louis product got his first tackle of the season.
Senior defensive tackle Gio Paez had three tackles for LSU in the 29-26 upset victory over Ole Miss. The Wisconsin transfer from Los Angeles was credited with half a sack. Damian Ramos made 3 of 4 field goal attempts for LSU. He accounted for 11 points. Alabama tight end Josh Cuevas has a five-yard catch in the 27-25 victory over South Carolina.
Nicholas Rodriguez has career high
Freshman linebacker Nicholas Rodriguez had a career day for Missouri against UMass. The Miami native had a hand in a career-high nine tackles, three of them of the solo variety. Sebastian Castro finished with five total tackles (five assist tackles) in Iowa’s dominant 40-16 victory over the Washington Huskies.
Logan Loya had four receptions for 45 yards with the longest of 17 yards in the Bruins’ 21-17 loss against Minnesota. Senior linebacker Kain Medrano had five tackles for UCLA in the Bruins’ loss against Minnesota.
Sophomore linebacker Tony Rojas finished with four tackles (two solo) in Penn State’s 33-30 overtime victory over USC. Syracuse wide receiver Trebor Peña had eight receptions for 75 yards with his longest reception going for 28 yards. Peña has five touchdowns and 458 yards this season.
Sophomore wide receiver Kevin Concepcion had two receptions for 46 yards. Concepcion’s longest reception was for 42 yards in the Wolfpack’s 24-17 loss against Syracuse. UTSA tight end Oscar Cardenas had two receptions for 21 yards in a 29-27 loss against Rice.
Colorado kicker Alejandro Mata remains perfect in points after touchdowns this season. Mata contributed four points in the Buffaloes 31-28 loss against the Kansas State Wildcats.
San Diego State kicker Gabriel Plascencia made two field goals. He was also solid on PATs in the Aztecs’ 27-24 victory over Wyoming. Plascencia scored a 28-yard field goal with over three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter to give the Aztecs the 27-24 lead.
Sophomore Joenel Aguero had four total tackles (three solo) and one assist tackle for No. 5 Georgia in their 41-31 victory over Mississippi State. Aguero has 14 total tackles with 11 solo tackles and three assisted tackles this season.
App State quarterback Joey Aguilar completed 20 of 42 attempts for 236 yards while scoring three touchdowns. He also threw four interceptions. Aguilar has thrown for 1,759 yards with 11 touchdowns and nine interceptions this season.
Carlos Leon-Trejo
Contributor
Carlos Leon-Trejo is a co-host on the Bring on the Blitz! podcast on the Our Esquina network. A graduate of the University of Houston-Victoria, Leon-Trejo teaches fifth grade math and science in Houston ISD.
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