Indiana QB Mendoza reflects on team’s success and Heisman hopes
Indiana QB Fernando Mendoza shares his thoughts on the team’s success, the Heisman Trophy.
Fernando Mendoza helped Indiana football do the unthinkable: win a Big Ten championship. For his part, the Hoosiers quarterback picked up a Heisman Trophy invite as one of the four finalists for the award given to college football’s top player.
And with that invitation to New York comes the opportunity to have some of the closest people in his life with him at the Heisman ceremony on Saturday, Dec. 13. That includes his best friend and the person who catalyzes his inspiration: his mom, Elsa Mendoza.
The Hoosiers quarterback is the presumed favorite.
In 13 games this season, Mendoza threw for a nation-leading 33 touchdowns with 2,980 passing yards. He also scored a career-high six rushing touchdowns this season all while leading the program to new heights in Year 2 of the Curt Cignetti era, which includes the program’s first undefeated regular season and first No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.
Here’s what to know about Fernando Mendoza’s mom ahead of the Heisman Trophy ceremony on Saturday:
Who is Fernando Mendoza’s mom?
Fernando Mendoza’s mom is Elsa Mendoza, a former women’s tennis player at the University of Miami.
More importantly, she’s also Fernando Mendoza’s best friend and “inspiration,” because of her open battle with multiple sclerosis.
“Our mom is our inspiration, our light, and gives us positivity every single day,” Fernando Mendoza told the IndyStar, part of the USA TODAY Network. “She’s my idol. I know she’s the same for Alberto, as both of our parents are, and seeing her fight and fight every single day gives us no excuse to ever take anything for granted.”
What illness does Fernando Mendoza’s mom have?
Elsa Mendoza is dealing with multiple sclerosis, a disease that affects the central nervous system. In a letter written to Fernando Mendoza on The Players’ Tribune, Elsa Mendoza mentioned she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis about 18 years ago. Her battle took a “downhill” turn about five years ago, when she was diagnosed with COVID-19.
Why is Fernando Mendoza’s mom in a wheelchair?
In an interview with Hoosiers Connect, Indiana’s NIL collective, Fernando Mendoza shared that his mom has a tough time “moving around” at this point in her battle. She was in Indianapolis at Lucas Oil Stadium for the Big Ten Championship game and was seen in a wheelchair.
“At this point, she has a tough time moving around and stuff like that, but her happiness, her joy and her determination is what inspires me every single day and that’s what pushes me,” Fernando told Hoosiers Connect. “You know, if I’m in a workout and I’m feeling tired, you know, a little thought in my mind goes, ‘Maybe you should skip out on this set’ or something like that, I’ll be like, my mom is out here every single day putting a ton of work, a ton of dedication and still with a great attitude, a great positive attitude in everything she does.”
In her Players Tribune letter, Elsa Mendoza mentioned Fernando has made her battle with MS “so much easier.”
“You’ve made it so much easier. And you’ve done that in the sweetest, strongest, most Fernando way possible — by making me feel the exact opposite of embarrassed. You’ve made me feel seen. Whether it was giving me full debriefs of your college visits, what you liked and disliked (pictures included) … or it was calling me before some big game I had to miss while in treatment … or it’s being so vocal and passionate about MS fundraising … or it’s even something as silly as joking, “Wait, did you put on a few pounds???” when you have to carry me up the stairs … you’ve always kept that same spark in your eye,” Elsa Mendoza wrote.
“No matter what kind of state I’ve been in, or day I’ve been having — you’ve never once looked away. You’ve never once treated me like I’m embarrassing, or deficient, or anything other than someone you love and are standing by. And even as my condition has gotten worse, and as our lives continue to change around that fact: You manage to make me feel like I’m still every part of myself. Like I’m still that same person you’ve been teammates with since we got through our first Boston winter together. Like I’m still that same mom.”
This season, Fernando Mendoza has teamed up with two Bloomington-based restaurants — BuffaLouie’s and Gables Bagels — to raise money for the National MS Society through an NIL-driven opportunity. At BuffaLouie’s, Fernando Mendoza has a burger called the “Mendoza Bros. Burger,” while Gables Bagels has a “Mendoza Bros. Cubano” bagel sandwich. Proceeds from both menu items go directly to the National MS Society.
Ahead of Saturday’s Heisman Trophy ceremony, Mendoza, through his partnership with Adidas, held a shopping spree at the company’s New York City location for four families impacted by MS. Each family received $10,000 each, and the money left over will be put on gift cards, per The Herald-Times’ Michael Niziolek.
