Mendoza walks away with historically uncompetitive Heisman

In a relatively down year for college football, Indiana Hoosiers signal-caller, Fernando Mendoza, has won the coveted Heisman Trophy for the 2025 college football season.

On December 8th, the Heisman finalists were announced, and most were shocked. Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia, Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin, and Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love were the four finalists for the 2025 season. Although Texas Tech’s star-studded linebacker Jacob Rodriguez drew attention with an impressive season, he failed to qualify as a finalist.

Compared to last year’s race between the record-breaking Ashton Jeanty and the two-way Swiss army knife in Travis Hunter, the 2025 race has been negatively acclaimed by many on social media.

Jeremiyah Love, being the lone running back among the finalists, had a good season, but certainly did not turn heads with his statistics. He was not first place in any major rushing category, being 4th in rushing yards and 3rd in rushing touchdowns. In comparison to former Heisman winners, Love’s 1,372 yards are less than Manziel’s 1,410 yards in his 2013 Heisman campaign. Ashton Jeanty had over 2,601 rushing yards in his 2024 campaign, which he ultimately did not win, having almost double what Love put up this year.

The three quarterbacks drawn as finalists had decent stats, but no records were set or matched this year. Sayin led the three in both passing yards and completion percentage, drawing attention as a consistently accurate quarterback. Pavia was the most explosive dual-threat of the three, eclipsing nearly 900 yards on the ground. However, he threw 8 interceptions — the most of the three finalists.

Texas Tech’s Jacob Rodriguez was the dark horse of the Heisman race. The designated middle linebacker of the Red Raiders had an impressive season, having an effortless nose for the ball. Rodriguez was responsible for 11 turnovers all season, picking off opposing quarterbacks 4 times and forcing 7 fumbles. He also recovered 2 fumbles, one of which would go for a touchdown. Although his defensive efforts were the highlight of his case for the Heisman, Texas Tech also utilized him as a goal-line running back, having 2 rushes for 3 yards and 2 touchdowns on the season. Despite his eye-catching stats, he would not qualify as a finalist, but he would ultimately receive more first-place votes in the final voting than Julian Sayin.

Fernando Mendoza, the eventual winner, had a special season. Indiana had their most successful season, going undefeated for the first time since 1945, when it went 9-0-1. Indiana also won the Big Ten conference title for the first time since 1967. Although the team itself was very successful, Mendoza’s statistics were not particularly impressive either. Mendoza made history, becoming the first Heisman winner as a quarterback in the modern, extended-season era to throw for under 3,000 yards. The last quarterback to do so was career NFL journeyman Vinny Testaverde in 1986.

Indiana is not a historically successful football program, playing in a very tough conference. Mendoza made history as the first Hoosier to become a Heisman winner. On top of this, he also became the first player of Cuban descent to take home the trophy.

The Heisman award, being the most prestigious award in college football, is always a big boost to a player’s draft stock. In a draft class widely considered to be lacking talent in comparison to former years, Mendoza winning this award all but guarantees that he will be a top pick in this year’s NFL draft.