Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza turns focus to Rose Bowl

Shortly after being named the 2025 Heisman Trophy winner, Fernando Mendoza made sure to share the hardware with those who have been by his side this season. Mendoza and his Hoosier teammates each took a turn carrying the award through a busy Times Square in New York before stopping to capture the moment together as a team. 

“This thing is really heavy,” the Indiana quarterback said. “So we’re passing it off to each other. Aiden Fisher is carrying it. Charlie Becker, Riley Nowakowski, Carter Smith is carrying it.

“Bray Lynch, everyone is carrying it because we’re basically handing it off to each other, switching security guards. At one point we’re all trying to get people out of the way. We were able to take pictures in Times Square, and I think it was a great time to be in the Big Apple.”

With the festivities now over and Mendoza cemented into the history books as the first Cuban American to win the Heisman, he returned to Bloomington, Ind., as No. 1 Indiana began preparing for the Rose Bowl.

Fernando Mendoza chases national championship

Mendoza and the Hoosiers will play No. 9 Alabama, which beat No. 8 Oklahoma in the first round of the College Football Playoff last Friday.  

Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer expects a difficult task against Mendoza, who led the Hoosiers of then-No. 1 Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship Game.

“I just think with obviously Mendoza winning the Heisman, that doesn’t happen by accident,” DeBoer said. “You put a whole season of film together, of games and stringing them each and every week and you end up undefeated because a trigger man can make some plays and do his things at an extremely high level.

“I look at their skill around the offensive line. They just all complement each other. They go make plays. When the opportunities are there, they get it done.”

Indiana improved to 13-0 on Dec. 6 with a 13-10 victory over Ohio State. A week later, Mendoza became the first Hoosier and third Latino to win the Heisman Trophy. 

He reflected on the support from family, teammates and previous Heisman winners he met during his weekend in New York for the Heisman festivities. 

Proud Latino

“The biggest highlight … other than winning was to see everybody that came out,” Mendoza told Indiana reporters. “I believe I had like 60 family members that came out, around 10 to 15 teammates that made the trip out on their own dime, and a lot of family and friends in the community that supported me along the way. … To see all of them and to see how much it meant to them, it was unreal.”

Among the many family members and supporters who traveled to see Mendoza were his grandparents, Alberto and Alicia. Fernando told reporters that the decision to thank them in Spanish was intended to show his appreciation of his Cuban roots.

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“I thought that saying something in Spanish, although I wouldn’t say I’m the most fluent, I’d like to think I’m conversational in Spanish, would mean a lot to them to show, ‘Hey, this is how much of an impact it’s had on myself.’

“And also for the Hispanic community out there because I know there’s a lot of Hispanic football fans, and it’s something that I’m looking forward to represent.”

As the 91st recipient of the Heisman Trophy, Mendoza entered a group of college football’s greatest icons, who welcomed him into the brotherhood with open arms. 

Special fraternity

“There’s so many guys that was fantastic meeting that weekend,” he said. “There’s so many. Just to name a few, Tim Brown, Doug Flutie, Tim Tebow, Crouch, Ty Detmer, Eddie George, all those guys and more, Gino Torretta and Danny Wuerfful, Coach Spurrier, all those guys. I’m missing so many, but all those guys were fantastic.”

“Hearing the stories from those guys and seeing how much that fraternity and how prestigious it is and how much it means to them has only made myself honor it and mean more to myself.”

Indiana, now led by its first Heisman in program history, will face Alabama in the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day to continue their quest for a national title. 

“I think this is pushing us forward,” he said. “And now all our team understands … that we need to be humble and hungry. Hey, it’s congrats, all this stuff, hey, let’s go, we did it. We got the (Heisman) trophy.

“Now it’s on to the real trophy or the season’s trophy, which is the National Championship.”