Fernando Mendoza’s dominance didn’t end at the Rose Bowl. The Heisman Trophy winner quickly became one of the most talked-about names on college football social media after Indiana’s emphatic 38–3 win over Alabama. And now, an ex-NFL quarterback has hopped onto the hype train with a bold claim.
Fernando Mendoza’s Rising NFL Stocks
After the Rose Bowl, ex-Chiefs QB Chase Daniel took to his X account and hailed Mendoza with a pretty direct statement.
His post read: “Fernando Mendoza will be the 1st overall pick in April purely based off last his two games vs Bama/Ohio St….absolutely surgical.”
Fair enough! Mendoza threw for 222 yards, completing 15 of 23 passes, for 1 TD and 1 INT against the Buckeyes. In the Rose Bowl win over the Crimson Tide, his stat line read: 14 of 16 pass completions over 192 yards for 3 TDS and no picks.
Those performances weren’t outliers either. Mendoza finished the season ranked second nationally on PFSN’s CFB QB Impact Metrics, posting a massive 93.3 impact score. That consistency is exactly why scouts aren’t treating this as a hot streak, but as confirmation of what they’ve been tracking all year.
Fernando Mendoza will be the 1st overall pick in April purely based off last his two games vs Bama/Ohio St….absolutely surgical
— Chase Daniel (@ChaseDaniel) January 1, 2026
Still, the No. 1 pick conversation isn’t completely settled. Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer added some intrigue, suggesting Oregon quarterback Dante Moore could challenge Mendoza, that is, ‘if’ Moore chooses to enter the draft.
“I’m not 100% convinced it’ll be Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza,” Breer wrote, noting Oregon’s expected push to keep Moore in Eugene another year.
“I will say it wouldn’t surprise me at all if he is, and he seems like a great kid, and one you can bet on. I’m just not sure, at this early juncture, whether he’ll go ahead of Oregon’s Dante Moore (should Moore turn down whatever Phil Knight’s offering him to stay in Eugene).”
Even so, Mendoza remains the favorite in most draft rooms. USA Today surveyed multiple mock drafts and found all of them projecting Mendoza at No. 1 overall, with the Raiders emerging as the most common landing spot. Pro Football Focus went a step further, calling him the “cornerstone” of a complete reset in Las Vegas, praising his ball security and maturity.
There’s also the bigger-picture appeal. Mendoza is winning late, managing pressure, and elevating the players around him. For teams staring down a rebuild, that profile matters just as much as arm strength.
But the process isn’t over. The combine, interviews, and one more playoff game still loom large. However, after Alabama and Ohio State, Mendoza has forced the league to recalibrate its approach. Daniel said it clearly. The numbers back it up. And right now, Mendoza looks every bit like a quarterback who’s playing his way to the very top of the board.
