Fernando Mendoza’s daring TD run delivered Indiana a National Championship

Fernando Mendoza Carried Indiana To A National Championship With An Epic TD Run

Can a college football player deliver a “Heisman moment” after already winning the Heisman Trophy?

If so, Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza did exactly that early in the fourth quarter of the National Championship game against Miami.

The Hoosiers secured their first national championship Monday night in a hard-fought 27-21 win over the Hurricanes, in a game that came down to the final possession. It was a contest that was closer than many expected, which gave Mendoza the stage for another moment for the ages.

It came with 9:18 remaining in the National Championship.

After Miami scored on a Mark Fletcher Jr. touchdown run to cut Indiana’s lead to 17-14, the Hoosiers took over on their own 25-yard line and began an extended drive, that culminated with head coach Curt Cignetti facing a decision. Mendoza failed to connect with wide receiver E.J. Williams Jr. on a 3rd-and-4 play at the Miami 12-yard line, leaving Cignetti torn between calling on his kicker, or leaving his Heisman Trophy winner on the field.

The Hoosiers took a timeout to think it over. Indiana’s field goal team initially went into the game, but then Cignetti called them back.

He put the ball, and arguably Indiana’s season, in Mendoza’s hands.

It was an aggressive decision, made moreso by the play call. Rather than have Mendoza look to throw, Cignetti and Indiana offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan called for a quarterback draw, asking Mendoza to pick up the four yards with his legs.

He got those four yards, and more:

It was a daring play call, but the design combined with the blocking up front paved the way for Mendoza to pick up the first down. But the Heisman winner was not content with just four yards, and after cutting to his right to pick up the first down yardage he needed, Mendoza barreled into a mass of humanity at the 5-yard line.

He bounced off one defender, managed to stay upright, and vaulted into the end zone for a critical touchdown to stake Indiana to a two-score lead.

Here is another look at his incredible run:

Speaking after the game, Cignetti discussed the decision to send Mendoza and the offense back into the game.

“I think we had gone for it on 4th down maybe the series before, too, or maybe it was that series. We finally came up with some ways to give the quarterback a chance to get the ball out of his hand because we were having some protection issues,” began Cignetti in the post-game press conference.

“That particular play didn’t feel really good about kicking a field goal there. The play before they were in the coverage for the quarterback draw, which we put in specifically in the medium package in the low red against that look. We had to block a little different than we normally do, and that was about a 45-minute discussion in the staff room how we were going to call it and do it.

“Line did a great job executing, so did the back, and Fernando trucked the linebacker, broke a few tackles.”

He then said a few more words about his quarterback.

“Let me tell you, Fernando, I know he’s great in interviews and comes off as the All-American guy, but he has the heart of a lion when it comes to competition. That guy competes like a warrior. He got really smacked a few times in this game. That one drive we kicked a field goal, there should have been two roughing the quarterbacks and one high hit to the head that weren’t called. I’m all for letting them play, but when they cross the line you’ve got to call them,” added Cignetti.

“Can’t say enough about his effort on that play and our team finding a way to get it done.”

Mendoza talked about putting his body on the line for his brothers.

“At that point I took the drop. It wasn’t the perfect coverage for it, but I trust my linemen, and everybody in that entire offense, that entire team had a gritty performance today. And we were all putting our bodies on the line, so it was the least I could do for my brothers,” began Mendoza.

“Yeah, I think everybody on the team including Coach makes fun of my running style. But as long as it gets the job done, it’s 4th down, so no matter how you run, no matter what it is, you’ve got to put it all on the line, and that’s something I was willing to do,” continued the Indiana quarterback.

“Any player on our team, if they had that opportunity, they would put their body on the line, too. And I wouldn’t want to do it for any — it’s so great because Coach Cig has talked about how close we are, like that’s just the epitome of how close we are. I’ll have a big run, and [linebacker Aiden Fisher] will be like, man, you looked so stupid, but you got it done. So you make fun of each other, joke, and in the end, we’ll all still be really close.”

In many ways, that run did exemplify Mendoza’s Heisman campaign. The quarterback has talked about putting himself and his body on the line for his teammates throughout the season, including taking a big hit early in the Big Ten Championship Game against Ohio State.

But with Indiana’s season on the line — and the Las Vegas Raiders looking on — Mendoza delivered once more.

He can now expect to take that running style to the Raiders as the first pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.