Fernando Mendoza’s Heisman Trophy win is latest example of college football’s controversial change being incredibly successful

Fernando Mendoza is the seventh Heisman Trophy winner in the last nine years to have transferred schools.

Tyler Forness — NFL & College Football News Writer
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Saturday night was the 91st Heisman Trophy ceremony. We are less than 10 years away from the 100th award being handed out, and this year was a tough choice with four very qualified finalists. The Heisman Trophy was awarded to Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, which is the first in program’s long history.

Mendoza dominated college football from the jump. He was a talented player at Cal last year, and taking over for Kurtis Rourke for Curt Cignetti’s Hoosiers felt like a really good fit. He led a very explosive offense for the Hoosiers, and was the reason it operated so well. Through the season, Mendoza completed 71.5% of his passes for 2,980 yards, 33 touchdowns, and six interceptions, while also rushing for 240 yards and six touchdowns. The most important element of his season was beating the Oregon Ducks 30-20 in Eugene and the Ohio State Buckeyes 13-10 o win Indiana’s first Big Ten conference title since before the Korean War.

Fernando Mendoza’s Heisman Trophy win continues lineage of transfer portal success stories

Mendoza wasn’t the highest profile quarterback in the transfer portal, but he was the right choice for the Hoosiers. He fit in Curt Cignetti‘s offense like a glove, and it ended up in a Heisman Trophy and the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff.

What Mendoza also signifies is another major success story for the transfer portal. When it came about, it wasn’t the most popular idea. Despite being able to themselves, coaches didn’t want players to have the freedom to go to other schools without penalty. Once that was put in place, it changed the sport forever.

It also allowed players the chance to shine when they may not have been given the chance to otherwise. In fact, Mendoza is the seventh player in the last nine years to have been a transfer with the school they transferred from in parenthesis.

These players used the portal for their own reasons. Hunter and Williams followed their head coach to a new job, Daniels wanted a fresh start, while Burrow, Murray, and Mayfield were going to be stuck behind other quarterbacks. You might know who replaced Mayfield for the Red Raiders as the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback, Patrick Mahomes.

While the portal has been a touchy subject across the board due to players sometimes entering every season, it’s also important to recognize the success it’s had at elevating careers and providing opportunities to succeed that they may not have had otherwise.

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