Miami homecoming for Fernando Mendoza, Mario Cristobal

When the Miami Hurricanes storm into Hard Rock Stadium against Fernando Mendoza in Miami Gardens for the College Football Playoff National Championship on Monday night, they will wear white uniforms and occupy the visiting sideline. 

Mendoza and the No. 1 Indiana Hoosiers will enter in cream and crimson, signifying their status as the home team as the higher seed. 

Yet the designation of “home” team might more accurately apply to Mendoza, who grew up less than a mile from the stadium.

Miami quarterback Carson Beck said playing for a national championship in Hard Rock Stadium still feels special.

“That’s the coolest thing about all of this — the opportunity to play in our home stadium for a national championship, in front of our home crowd and our home city,” Beck said. “It’s an unbelievable opportunity for us, for The U, and just the city in general.”

Sideline switch

He acknowledged the sideline switch could be strange.

“It will definitely be different,” Beck said. “We’ll be in a different locker room and on a different sideline. I’m sure some guys might get confused and start running to the other sideline mid-game. But once you step on the lines in between the field, it’s the same size field, same end zone, same 100 yards. Again, it will come down to the execution of the game.”

Mendoza’s connection to the University of Miami started with his mother, Elsa, who played tennis for the Hurricanes. She was the first to teach him how to throw a football using a serve drill.

The programs are so intertwined that the 2025 Heisman Trophy winner is one of five players who once played for Miami’s Christopher Columbus High Explorers. Miami head coach Mario Cristobal and assistant head coach Alex Mirabal also played on the offensive line for the Explorers with Fernando Mendoza Sr.

MORE FROM OUR ESQUINA

Fernando Mendoza, Jacob Rodriguez, KC Concepcion lead 2025 Latino All-America team

Inspired by Zach Calzada, Fernando Mendoza passes torch

Texas A&M star KC Concepcion speaks with authority

Five players from the current rosters won state titles at Columbus. Mendoza won a state title in 2019 and led the Explorers to a state semifinal in 2021. His brother, Hoosiers backup quarterback Alberto Mendoza, won consecutive state championships.

Miami completes the group of former Explorers with defensive back Bryce Fitzgerald, offensive lineman Ryan Rodriguez and reserve quarterback Vinny Gonzalez.

Columbus High pride

“Having Coach Cristobal, Coach Mirabal, and a couple of guys on the team who obviously played for Columbus, we always joke around, and I always say, ‘Well, I beat you guys.’ It’s always a fun little joking matter in the facility,” Beck said. “You can tell there’s been so much talent coming out of that school. A lot of respect for the school, 100 percent, absolutely.”

Cristobal and Fernando Mendoza’s father, Fernando Sr., were also teammates at Columbus, where Cristobal played offensive tackle. Cristobal later attended the University of Miami from 1989 to 1992 and was part of two national championship teams in 1989 and 1991.

“Columbus, just like the University of Miami, is everything to me. …Columbus is and always has been the foundation of everything that we have,” Cristobal said. “We’re still not where we want to be yet, but certainly we owe everything, so much to Columbus High School.”

He added, “(Fernando Sr.) and I played together.  As the years go by obviously you can’t stay in touch with everybody, but a tremendous amount of respect for the entire family. … We’ve known each other for a long time.”

The high school where this College Football Playoff pipeline begins is just five miles from the University of Miami campus and 20 miles from Hard Rock Stadium.

Beck also has ties to the game through his high school, the Mandarin Mustangs, who defeated Columbus in the 2018 Florida 8A state championship game.

State champs

“One of the coolest memories of my life is winning a state championship. I remember preparing for that game and watching it, thinking, ‘Man, this team is really talented. This is going to be a challenge for our football team.’ It was a really close game that came down to two points being the deciding factor. For me, that’s one of my most memorable moments in football in general,” Beck said.

One year later, Columbus reclaimed the state title with Fernando Mendoza at the helm. Monday night will be the first time the two quarterbacks will meet, though. 

“I’ve never had the opportunity to meet (Mendoza), and I don’t really know him,” Beck said. “But from what I’ve been able to see from him, … he seems really talented, really good person. Again, wishing him the best and a lot of success.”

Defensive end Rueben Bain Jr. also calls Miami home. He attended Miami Central High School. Bain made it clear the team’s focus goes beyond location.

“Motivated by being an underdog is a lot,” Bain said. “I feel like that’s been our whole journey, the whole story of the whole playoffs. We like it. We don’t want nobody to believe in us. The people that believe in us is just the program, and that’s all we need.

“Everybody in that room putting on pads is helping us try to get to our better goal and that’s all we need. It’s going to be a little different not having the same sideline and things like that, but no matter where we at, we going to get the job done.”