FINS DRAFT THE NEXT WAVE: QB FERNANDO MENDOZA

There is no more fitting first profile for the Aqua & Orange Report’s THE NEXT WAVE than new Indiana University quarterback Fernando Mendoza.

Mendoza played his prep football at Miami’s Christopher Columbus High School, just 30 minutes from Hard Rock Stadium. And he is the proud grandson of Cuban immigrants.

Would there be any bigger story in South Florida than a Cuban-American grandson of four immigrant abuelos — who undoubtedly took an incredibly hard journey from Cuba — becoming the quarterback of the Miami Dolphins?

At this time in American history, the heritage of many families is under attack, so if such a thing played out, few journeys would have such meaning to the power and importance of immigration in America.

That is not a political statement – regardless of current U.S. affairs, there is no denying this country was built on the backs of immigrants.

“All my grandparents were born and raised in Cuba, three in Havana, one in Santiago,” Mendoza said in a recent interview at Indiana. “I’m extremely grateful for all the hardship that they’ve been through coming over and the whole part of being an immigrant, starting from the ground up and really laying a foundation.”

THE FOOTBALL SIDE

The choice to profile Mendoza did not begin with knowledge of his hometown or family history. His football showed up first.

Mendoza played last season at Cal, his redshirt sophomore season. At 6-5, 225 with the ability to run, it would typically be perplexing how he ended up in the portal and not find his way to The U. But his brother is also a quarterback at Indiana and their mother, Elsa, lives with multiple sclerosis so visits to see them both will be easier if they are in the same place.

In addition to family matters, the Hoosiers were one of the surprise teams of college football last season under head coach Curt Cignetti running a spread/RPO offense that chewed up some of the best in the Big Ten. So Mendoza didn’t take any sort of a hit to his pro prosects by moving to Bloomington.

FAMILIAR TRAITS

It would be a reach to compare Mendoza to Josh Allen, but it would not be unfair to see similarities.

At his size, he stands in the pocket and can surveys the field well. He has a strong arm, can escape the pocket to extend a play or run for big yards. Though his arm is strong, particularly in certain situations, he doesn’t yet possess the Allen physicality and his arm does not seem near as strong as the Dolphins’ nemesis at this time.

With one or more likely two years left in college though and an eventual pro camp, it isn’t too much of a challenge to see Mendoza’s 6-5, 225 frame look much more like that of the 6-5, 238 Allen.

As we see it at ACR, Mendoza is of interest for the Dolphins should he be available in 2027, the first year Miami can choose to get out of Tua Tagavailoa’s contract if that’s what is in the cards.

FILM NOTES

After watching his 2024 highlights from Cal, I took the following notes:

– Can RIP it on the run, especially going to his right

– Also accurate rolling to his right and throwing on the run. Looks like a former middle infielder in that sense, very comfortable

– Can set his feet and throw with conviction or throw off platform if something opens up quickly

– Throws a good, timed ball on medium-range outs or back shoulder throws

– Far from clumsy at 6-5, his feet are good in the pocket AND he’s a very good runner

– Arm looks good-not-great overall but definitely strong enough to throw outs to the field side in the NFL

– Doesn’t stress at all with pressure in his face

– Line in 2024 was clearly suspect

– Is accurate. Delivery seems a little long but it comes out quick enough.

– Didn’t see too many deep balls where he put any air under the ball so don’t know on that one. Comfort level seems up to 30-35 yards

POSTED GOOD NUMBERS IN AT BERKELEY

Mendoza appeared in 20 career games with 19 starts over three seasons at Cal, redshirting as a freshman in 2022. He finished his time there as the all-time leader in completion percentage (66.4%) and tied for seventh with 10 games passing for 250 yards or more. He matched the marks of former backup NFL QB Gale Gilbert (10; 1980-84) and the enigmatic Pittsburgh Steelers’ Aaron Rodgers (10; 2003-04) in doing so.

THINGS TO WATCH FOR MENDOZA IN 2025

Mendoza will be managing an Indiana offense that is an RPO offense run out of the spread and they do it efficiently. The Hoosiers run most plays out of shotgun or pistol, so many plays are actually P>R>O because the first option on the play as well as the first look the line shows is usually pass.

By comparison, the Dolphins run outside zone out of multiple looks but primarily play it out of the gun despite first showing run. San Francisco and Miami’s variation on the original Mike Shanahan offense is primarily that – not running it with the QB under center.

Ironically, Mendoza’s offensive coordinator will be Mike Shanahan (no relation), but the things you’d like to see in 2025 (and possibly 2026) is how quickly he can pick up Cignetti’s offense. In addition, it would be good to see more of his ability as it relates to second and third reads, which was hard for me to see in what I watched from his Cal tape.

With his pass and run skills combined with Indiana’s offense and Big Ten exposure, Mendoza’s name could be one moving up draft boards in 2025. He will have an excellent primary target at Indiana in Elijah Surratt, a 6-2 receiver I thought might come out last year and would have rated favorably.

The final thing I will be looking for out of Mendoza is how he handles deep balls. Early indications seem to be that he might wait a bit and throw the ball a little flat, though he does tend to throw those accurately. I would like to see him lay one way out there for his receiver to go get as that is something that was missing on the film I watched.

At this early stage in the evaluation process, Mendoza is seen by many as a Top 5 quarterback in the 2026 draft, and by others as a potential riser on draft boards. Again, for Miami, the interest would lie in if he comes out in 2027.

CUBAN ROOTS IMPORTANT; A MODEL STUDENT & CITIZEN

Football notwithstanding, Mendoza doesn’t sit idly by.

His Cuban heritage is very important to him and he said he has seen parallels in his own football journey. He helped organized a Cuban Relief Service trip in which he and his grandfather, Alberto Espino, went to Cuba to give to back to his family’s native community, locals and family members who remained on the island.

“My grandfather and I went back, we saw some cousins who had ended up staying in Cuba … just saw the community as a whole,” said Mendoza. “It was a very transformative experience and really showed my brother and I how grateful we are for the opportunity that our grandparents took (to come to the United States).”

In addition to his work in the Cuban-American community, Mendoza was one of three hosts of the 2024 Cal Golden Buddies Youth Football Clinic for children with disabilities.