IU soccer's Fernando Mendoza named a finalist for 2025 Heisman Trophy

Photos from IU football's Big Ten championship win against Ohio State.

For the primary time since 1989 and simply the second time in program historical past, IU soccer has a finalist for the Heisman Trophy.

Fernando Mendoza is likely one of the 4 finalists for the 2025 Heisman Trophy, together with Notre Dame operating again Jeremiyah Love, Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia and Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin.

Mendoza is taken into account the favourite to win the award. IU soccer has by no means had a Heisman Trophy winner, as Anthony Thompson completed because the runner-up to Andre Ware in 1989.

Different top-10 finishers within the Heisman Trophy voting from IU embrace Invoice Hillenbrand (1942), Vaughn Dunbar (1991), Antwaan Randle El (2001), Tevin Coleman (2014) and Kurtis Rourke (2004).

Over 13 video games for the unbeaten Hoosiers – the Huge Ten champions and the No. 1 seed within the School Soccer Playoff – the Miami native has thrown for two,980 yards with a completion proportion of 71.5.

Mendoza has 33 passing touchdowns to only six interceptions and 6 dashing touchdowns. He has 240 dashing yards with a median of three.5 yards per carry.

The Heisman Trophy award presentation will happen on Saturday in New York Metropolis. The ceremony begins at 7 p.m. ET and can be televised by ABC.

Congratulations to the 2025 Heisman Trophy finalists: @NDFootball RB Jeremiyah Love, @IndianaFootball QB Fernando Mendoza, @VandyFootball QB Diego Pavia, and @OhioStateFB QB Julian Sayin!#Heisman | #MoreThanATrophy pic.twitter.com/kbVh0SxFAd

— The Heisman Trophy (@HeismanTrophy) December 8, 2025

Right here’s the total launch on the Heisman finalists from the Heisman Trophy belief:

Love, a junior from St. Louis, Mo., is fourth nationally in dashing yards (1,372), fifth in yards per sport (114.33) and is third with 18 dashing scores. Love, who had 27 receptions for 280 yards and three touchdowns, can also be fourth nationally in all-purpose yards (1,652) and second nationally with 21 touchdowns. He scored no less than one landing in every of his last 11 video games. Love’s 21 TDs surpassed Jerome Bettis’ faculty document for many in a daily season (1991) whereas his 18 dashing scores match this system’s single-season document. He rushed for over 100 yards six instances, together with a Notre Dame Stadium document and season-best 228 yards in a win over rival USC. He additionally had 171 yards on simply eight carries towards Syracuse to go together with a career-high three dashing scores and 157 towards Purdue.

Mendoza, a redshirt junior from Miami, Fla., is the 2025 Huge Ten Offensive Participant and Quarterback of the Yr and an All-Huge Ten first-team quarterback who led Indiana to a 2025 Huge Ten Championship victory over Ohio State and a No. 1 seed within the School Soccer Playoff. Mendoza, in his first yr at Indiana after transferring from California, led the Hoosiers to a 13-0 document and this system’s first-ever No. 1 rating. He accomplished 226-of-316 passes for two,980 yards and a nation-leading 33 TD passes whereas dashing for 240 yards and one other six scores. He’s second nationally in whole touchdowns accounted for (39) and in quarterback ranking (181.39) and is sixth in completion proportion (71.5). Mendoza’s 33 TD passes are a faculty season document as are his 5 video games this season with 4 or extra scoring passes. He threw for a season-high 332 yards and 4 scores in a win over Michigan State. He accomplished higher than 85% of his passes 4 instances this yr and threw no less than one TD move in every sport exterior of the season-opener.

Pavia, a graduate senior from Albuquerque, N.M., in his second yr as a Commodore, led Vanderbilt to its first 10-win season in 2025. The 2025 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award winner accomplished 242-of-340 passes for a school-record 3,192 yards and 27 touchdowns (tied for eighth nationally) and a completion proportion of 71.2 (eighth nationally). Pavia, who additionally rushed for 826 yards and 9 scores, is tied for fourth nationally in whole touchdowns accounted for (36). He threw for over 300 yards 4 instances, together with a career-high 484 yards and 5 touchdowns towards Kentucky, 377 towards Auburn and 365 towards Texas. He ran for over 100 yards twice, together with within the season-finale win over rival Tennessee with a season-best 165 yards in addition to 112 in a win over Auburn. He has rushed for 1,627 yards in his Vanderbilt profession.

Sayin, a sophomore from Carlsbad, Calif., led the Buckeyes to a 12-1 document, a No. 1 rating for a lot of the season, a berth within the 2025 Huge Ten Championship sport and a No. 2 seed within the School Soccer Playoff. The 2025 Huge Ten Freshman of the Yr, Sayin leads the nation in QB ranking (182.05), handed for 3,329 yards and his 31 TD passes are tied for second nationally. He’s additionally first within the nation in completion proportion (78.4, on 280-of-357 passing), which incorporates 4 video games finishing higher than 85% of his passes. Sayin threw no less than one TD move in each sport this season and had simply six interceptions. He handed for over 300 yards six instances and handed for 4 TDs in a sport 3 times. He helped finish the Buckeyes’ four-game dropping streak to rival Michigan with 233 yards and three scoring passes.

All 4 2025 Heisman finalists are additionally 2025 Walter Camp finalists whereas Love, Mendoza and Sayin are 2025 Maxwell Award finalists. Mendoza and Sayin are finalists for the 2025 Davey O’Brien Award. Love is a finalist for the 2025 Doak Walker Award.

Love is Notre Dame’s sixth finalist and the primary since Manti Te’o in 2012. Mendoza is Indiana’s second Heisman finalist and its first since Anthony Thompson in 1989. Pavia is Vanderbilt’s first finalist. Sayin is Ohio State’s eleventh finalist and its seventh since 2018, together with Marvin Harrison Jr. in 2023. The Buckeyes’ 11 finalists are tied for probably the most within the trophy’s historical past with Oklahoma and Alabama.

That is the seventh yr in a row there have been 4 Heisman finalists. The Heisman Trophy Belief introduced in 2021 it should formally invite 4 finalists yearly to New York Metropolis for the Heisman weekend. There have now been 184 gamers invited to New York as Heisman finalists for the reason that apply was first instituted in 1982.

The 2025 Heisman Trophy ballots went out to 930 electors, which incorporates 870 members of the media, 59 residing Heisman winners and one general fan vote. All ballots have been submitted electronically to the impartial accountants at Deloitte.

See Extra: Soccer