Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza is wanting again on going viral with an emotional postgame interview after his Huge 10 Championship sport victory.
“It was simply real uncooked emotion,” Mendoza, 22, admitted to Individuals in an interview printed on Friday, December 12. “Possibly it was a bit of an excessive amount of.”
Following his Indiana Hoosiers’ victory over Ohio State within the Huge 10 championship sport on December 6, Mendoza stole the hearts of the web when he was overcome with emotion on stay TV.
Requested how the victory felt, the QB practically broke down in tears as he stated: “It sounds so stunning! I wish to give all of the glory to God. We have been by no means presupposed to be on this place however by the nice glory of God, the nice coaches, the nice teammates, and everybody we now have round us, we have been in a position to pull this off!”
He then quipped: “Who ever thought the Hoosiers could be right here? However, now the Hoosiers are flippin’ champs! Let’s go!”
Wanting again on that triumphant second, Mendoza instructed Individuals it was a very real expression of his pleasure.
“I used to be actually, actually comfortable for my staff, and on the identical time I didn’t wanna say something cliche, you already know, like ‘all the things is feasible,’” he defined. “So I simply needed to maintain it down and hold it genuine and simply give the world my actual self.”
Mendoza felt like his sincerity could have taken viewers without warning because it was “totally different than a variety of cookie-cutter interviews.”
“I feel it caught folks off-guard, however you already know, I’m excited for folks to study the true me,” he added.
Nonetheless, Mendoza most likely solely heard concerning the unbelievable response to his viral interview second-hand. The Hoosiers quarterback revealed to The Herald Solar in October 2025 that he’d eliminated practically the entire social media apps from his telephone.
Heisman Trophy candidates Jeremiyah Love, Fernando Mendoza, Diego Pavia and Julian Sayin. Adam Starvation/Getty Pictures
“I deleted all social media. The one social media proper now that’s on my telephone is LinkedIn and YouTube, to observe movies,” he stated.
Fernando confirmed that his youthful brother Alberto — who additionally performs for the Hoosiers — and “some marking folks” deal with his Instagram.
“Aside from that, I’m not on any social media,” he reiterated. “I wish to hold all the things contained in the constructing. … There’s a variety of issues the place I don’t wish to go to the surface noise and get the, ‘Oh, that’s so nice,’ and sort of neglect about these points I must construct on. And vice versa. I’m simply actually making an attempt to maintain it within the constructing.”
He added, “We now have such nice coaches. I’m simply making an attempt to maintain my deal with listening to their recommendation and their suggestions.”
The athlete spoke about his viral fame mere hours earlier than the largest night time of his soccer profession, to date. On Saturday, he gained the Heisman Trophy over Notre Dame working again Jeremiyah Love, Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia, and Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin. (Mendoza is the first-ever Heisman winner for the Hoosiers.)
If you happen to’re a Vanderbilt soccer fan — or for those who’ve watched a single Vanderbilt soccer sport this season — there’s a superb likelihood you’re acquainted with quarterback Diego Pavia’s mother. Antoinette Padilla has been within the stands supporting her son all season, and the TV cameras have a humorous manner of discovering her. Because the […]
It has been per week to recollect for Mendoza, as he was named the Related Press Participant of the Yr on Thursday, December 11, for main the Hoosiers to their first Huge Ten championship since 1967.
“I’m shining now however solely as a result of there are such a lot of stars round me,” he instructed the outlet. “There’s an analogy that the one cause we’re in a position to see stars within the sky is as a result of the sunshine displays from all various kinds of stars. I’ve so many stars round myself — whether or not it’s my teammates, my coaches, my household, assist workers — that I’m in a position to shine now on this mild, and I’m so comfortable for everybody to be part of this.”
In the meantime, the Hoosiers are looking forward to the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2026, the place they are going to face off with the winners of the Alabama vs. Oklahoma sport, which takes place on December 19.
