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IU football’s Fernando Mendoza honored with Davey O’Brien Award

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Photos from IU football's 27-21 win against Miami (FL) in the CFP national championship game.

IU football quarterback Fernando Mendoza was honored on Monday in Fort Worth, Texas, as the Davey O’Brien Award winner.

Here’s the full release from IU Athletics on the major accolade for Mendoza:

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – More history was made on Wednesday (Dec. 10) as Indiana head football coach Curt Cignetti and quarterback Fernando Mendoza were honored by the Walter Camp Football Foundation with national of the year awards.

The 49th recipient of the award, Mendoza is the first Hoosier to win the prestigious honor and just the fifth to claim the quartet of Heisman Trophy, Davey O’Brien Award and Maxwell Award, along with winning the national championship. Since the Davey O’Brien Award began in 1981, Mendoza joins Joe Burrow (LSU), Cam Newton (Auburn), Danny Wuerffel (Florida) and Charlie Ward (Florida State) to earn all four distinctions.

Mendoza led the nation in passing touchdowns (41) and touchdowns responsible for (48), both set IU single season standards. He is the third Big Ten quarterback since 2000 with three-straight games of at least four passing touchdowns and zero interceptions – C.J. Stroud (Ohio State; 2021) and Kyle Orton (Purdue; 2004, four straight). The Miami, Florida, native was also the only FBS quarterback since at least 1996 with multiple games of at least 90 percent completion and four touchdown passes versus Power 4 opponents.

In 2025, Mendoza was the lone FBS quarterback with five games of 4-plus touchdown passes and zero interceptions and paced the FBS in percentage of passes that resulted in a touchdown at 10.8%, over one point higher than the next closest passer (Julian Sayin, Ohio State; 9.2%).

He threw a touchdown pass in 14 of 16 games in 2025 and posted five games with both a passing and rushing touchdown. He threw 41 touchdowns to just six interceptions, tied for No. 2 on the team with seven rushing touchdowns.

Along with the Davey O’Brien Award, Mendoza claimed the Heisman Trophy, AP College Football National Player of the Year, Manning Award, Maxwell Award, Walter Camp Award, Hispanic Football Hall of Fame College Player of the Year and the Chicago Tribune Silver Football.

He was a consensus All-America, earned Graham-George Offensive Player of the Year and Griese-Brees Quarterback of the Year. The third Hoosier to earn Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year with Anthony Thompson (1988 & 1989) and Antwaan Randle El (2001), Mendoza was the seventh IU signal caller and first since Randle El in 2001 to earn first-team All-B1G honors Since 1950, he is just the third Hoosier to claim the first team spot at quarterback along with Randle El and Harry Gonso (1967).

He was the Big Ten Championship Game MVP, Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl Offensive MVP and College Football Playoff National Championship Game Offensive MVP. His play in the postseason also earned him the quarterback nod on the AP All-College Football Playoff Team.

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