BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Fernando Mendoza might be the most earnest athlete I've ever met. You can sense it from the minute you and the rest of the media surround him by the squat rack in the weight room for his post-Illinois game interview.
Here he was after completing 21-of-23 passes for 267 yards and five touchdowns in the 63-10 annihilation of then-No. 9 Illinois.
Within seconds of the interview, he's grousing about the two incompletions on his record. That's right, he missed Elijah Sarratt and Omar Cooper Jr. and now he was filled with regret. For the record, he's thrown three incompletions in two games. And oh, by the way, he is currently the betting favorite (+650) to win the Heisman Trophy.
But those two throws...
"I've got to make those throws," he said, well, earnestly. "We'll clean that up."
The truth is, Mendoza and the offense are toying with perfection. They scored touchdowns on five consecutive drives Saturday. And this was not against Kennesaw State; this was against Illinois, winners of seven straight games, winners of 10 games last year, a team giving up an average of 7.3 points per game prior to the meeting with IU. And IU threw them out of the club in front of a sellout, red-out crowd at Memorial Stadium. Fans didn't even leave early despite the one-sided nature of the game. They were too busy enjoying the smackdown.
The Heisman talk is early, of course, with a competitive schedule that includes road games at Iowa this Saturday, and at Oregon and Penn State later in the season. Mendoza may be the leader in the clubhouse, but those road performances will reveal just how valid his candidacy is. But the idea of an IU player vying for the Heisman, that hasn't happened since running back Anthony Thompson finished second in the voting to Houston quarterback Andre Ware back in 1989.
For the time being, Mendoza is the talk of college football, especially now that the hype around Arch Manning has quieted.
But like I was saying...earnest. He even interviews differently. Not only is he voluble, when he's interviewed on TV, he looks directly into the camera. Who does that? He's a different cat -- but in a good way.
"I think like any super talented athletes, reps are huge, right?" said IU center Pat Coogan. "Like getting reps throughout the spring and summer, like how him and his brother (Alberto) were out there throwing every single day in the summer. I'm like, `Oh my God, this is crazy.' Like, these guys are super dedicated, but it's paying off, right? And you're seeing the fruits of their labor. And I know they're not satisfied. Those kids are hard workers, man, but Fernando, he's super talented and he's playing extremely well and he's been a great leader for us...I think Fernando, his arm talent, is just unbelievably special."
Mendoza, a Cal transfer, would be the first to concede that his opening-game performance against Old Dominion, a clunky 27-14 victory, was below standards. But he came alive against Kennesaw State, Indiana State and Illinois. He now leads the FBS in passing touchdowns (14) and has yet to throw an interception.
"I thought he took a major step forward last week and again this week," Curt Cignetti said after the Illinois game. "I had a lot of confidence in him going into the game. I think his progress has really accelerated the last couple of weeks, and he's been right on target."
Said Mendoza: "Early in the season, against Old Dominion, it was like I wanted to have too perfect a season. I was trying to force completions here and there, but as soon as I went back and got coached by (quarterbacks) Coach (Chandler) Whitmer, (offensive coordinator) Coach (Mike) Shanahan and Coach Cignetti, we talked about sticking to the process, one play at a time, no emotion. I got back into being who I am, trying to accelerate my footwork and finish throws, really trust my eyes and rip the ball."
We don't yet know how Mendoza feels about being the Heisman front-runner. He spoke to the media after Saturday's game while the betting lines came out early this week. I'm guessing he'll be unimpressed.
As the Heisman talk has started to percolate, so has the draft conversation. Most draftniks have him as a first-round selection; one that I saw -- and don't ask me where -- had him being the first quarterback off the board in next year's draft. This is what Dane Brugler, The Athletic's draft expert, wrote about Mendoza after the Illinois game.
"I don't think anyone should be drastically altering their opinion of Mendoza based on this one tape, especially given that 17 of his 21 completions came within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage. But he deserves credit for playing in rhythm and taking what was available for him, Playing quarterback at a high level isn't just about creating big plays, it's also about limiting mistakes and attacking where the defense is most vulnerable -- that's what Mendoza does in this offense.
"...There are some limitations to Mendoza's game, which will be interpreted differently from evaluator to evaluator, but his mental acuity and accuracy can make him an NFL starter."
IU fans thought they had it good with Kurtis Rourke, but he was just the appetizer. Mendoza is the real deal, operating IU's RPO-heavy offense to near-perfection. The Heisman talk is ridiculously early. We all know that. But to have an IU player competing for college football's highest individual honor says a lot about Mendoza, and about a program that's turned into a budding powerhouse.
Bob Kravitz is an award-winning columnist who has been in the sports journalism business for 43 years. He's worked at Sports Illustrated, the Indianapolis Star, The Athletic and other publications, and is now an Indiana-based publisher at Roundtable Sports. You can follow him on X @bkravitz.