Fernando Mendoza is about to be drafted by the Las Vegas Raiders, and his brother Alberto will be the Georgia Tech QB.
At this point, the Las Vegas Raiders and the rest of the NFL know a lot about Fernando Mendoza, which is hardly surprising given the way any top quarterback gets picked apart as part of the pre-draft process.
But one thing most people didn’t know is that Mendoza also has a younger brother, Alberto, who plays quarterback, and until now he spent his college career as Fernando’s understudy at Indiana. That’s something you’d almost have to be a hardcore Hoosiers fan to know, but now Albert Mendoza is about to have a much larger audience.
According to an ESPN report, Mendoza is now the favorite to become the starter at Georgia Tech after spring practice after transferring from Indiana.
"Alberto is the guy," coach Brent Key said when asked about the Yellow Jackets' quarterbacks room after Saturday's spring game.
Mendoza was also named the offensive captain for the spring game, and he completed 12 of 16 passes for 148 yards and a touchdown.
"Obviously, he still has to compete and still has to win the job, but he's done nothing to disappoint me and think that's not going to be the case," Key told Georgia Tech's radio network during the spring game.
Mendoza will be competing with Grady Adamson, and the pair will be replacing Haynes King, the Yellow Jackets’ dual threat start quarterback. Adamson completed 8-of-14 passes for 104 yards and a touchdown, and he also ran for a score.
Running has been part of the Georgia Tech offense during King’s career. The Yellow Jackets had a successful season last year behind King, as they posted a 7-2 record in the ACC to go with an overall mark of 9-4. King rushed for almost a thousand yards to go with 15 touchdowns, and he completed almost 70 percent of his passes for 2,591 yards with 14 touchdowns and just six interceptions.
Alberto Mendoza announced his decision to transfer less than 24 hours after winning a national title at Indiana, where he was the backup for his older brother, who is expected to be the No. 1 pick in next week's NFL draft for the Las Vegas Raiders,
He’ll have an opportunity to step into a successful program, and he’ll also won’t be overshadowed by his much more famous Hoosier brother. Fernando Mendoza is currently learning how to run the Raiders offense under the tutelage of Brian Griese, according to reports.