Fernando Mendoza National Championship versus Miami, Part XVI of Las Vegas Raiders’ Mendoza Mania

MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA - JANUARY 19: Fernando Mendoza #15 of the Indiana Hoosiers raises the National Championship Trophy after Indiana defeated the Miami Hurricanes 27-21 in the 2026 College Football Playoff National Championship at Hard Rock Stadium on January 19, 2026 in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Shed a tear; we've reached the finale of Silver and Black Pride's Mendoza Mania series, as we'll be diving into Fernando Mendoza's performance in the National Championship against Miami.

Unlike the previous playoff games, Indiana was in a dogfight against the Hurricanes, squeaking out a 27-21 victory. That was due in part to the No. 1 pick of the 2026 NFL draft completing 16 of 27 passes (59.3%) for 187 yards with no passing touchdowns and no interceptions, but a famous 12-yard touchdown run that will be seen below.

This is certainly a case where the stat line doesn't do the performance justice because the Las Vegas Raiders' new quarterback's impact on the game was much bigger than what the numbers above show. Part of the reason for that is he was pressured on nearly 35 percent of his dropbacks, according to Pro Football Focus.

While Mendoza had moments where he was pressing too much in the National Championship, he also delivered when the lights were brightest.

Almost the same throw in the Natty pic.twitter.com/z0azZ3iRom

- Matt Holder (@MHolder95) July 23, 2026

After going through every pass attempt he made last season, one way to know if Mendoza is pressing is when he starts predetermining throws. If you've followed this series closely, you know that it's one bad habit he needs to kick in the NFL. Indiana was struggling to get much going through the air early in the contest, partially because Miami's defensive backs were sitting on and ready to defend the back shoulder passes, and this play is a good example of that.

With the offense lined up in a three-by-one formation and the defense in Cover 1, Mendoza does have a one-on-one matchup with one of his favorite targets, Charlie Becker, who runs a sluggo route against press coverage. So, the quarterback is trusting that his guy is going to win with the double move. However, the cornerback has perfect coverage and is in a spot where he can defend against the back-shoulder throw or a ball over the top.

In other words, Becker is never open. But Mendoza throws it anyway and misses too far inside, forcing the receiver to play defense and prevent the interception in the end zone. Mendoza is lucky this wasn't picked because that would have taken a scoring opportunity off the board. It's one thing to like a one-on-one matchup pre-snap, but the receiver has to at least show signs of getting open on the actual play to make the throw.

Missed opportunity for Fernando Mendoza with Cooper getting wide open pic.twitter.com/kgZVTumSsN

- Matt Holder (@MHolder95) July 23, 2026

This next one is another forced throw and a big missed opportunity.

Miami is playing Cover 1 again, and Indiana dials up a bootleg with a half rollout, meaning the quarterback gets out of the pocket but settles down around midfield instead of staying on the run. It looks like his first read is to Omar Cooper Jr., who runs about a 10-yard out from the slot, and gets physical with the defensive back by running the DB over to be wide open near the sideline. However, Mendoza comes off that read for some reason.

Maybe he was thinking Cooper was going to fall with the defender or was worried that the timing would be thrown off with the contact at the top of the route. Regardless, that's a missed opportunity for an explosive play that could have tilted the momentum of the game.

On top of that, the No. 1 pick ends up forcing a throw to Elijah Sarratt, who is double covered on the pylon route with the safety coming over the top to help the cornerback in a trail position. While the pass falls incomplete and the offense still has a chance to move the sticks, what should have been an easy first down ends up being a third and long situation.

Great processing under pressure from Fernando Mendoza

Sees LG losing and comes off his first read to find a quick answer and beat the pressure#Raiderspic.twitter.com/CCfbOcoko7

- Matt Holder (@MHolder95) July 23, 2026

But, as mentioned in the intro, the Heisman Trophy winner had plenty of moments where he handled pressure well to earn some more hardware by night's end.

This time, the Hurricanes get more creative with their coverage by showing a two-high look pre-snap before rotating the boundary safety down to play Cover 3. Meanwhile, the Hoosiers run a concept where the two outside receivers run 10-yard outs, and the two slot receivers run curls right at the sticks.

Initially, Mendoza looks to hit Sarratt on the out since it appeared as if Sarratt would have a one-on-one matchup as the single receiver. However, the safety rotating down and into the curl-to-flat zone makes that a risky throw. Additionally, that's one of the two longer developing routes in the play call, and the left guard gets beaten in pass protection by the defensive tackle pretty quickly.

Luckily, Mendoza recognizes that the pressure is coming and comes off his first read to get his quick-hitter or answer against pressure, finding the tight end on the sit/curl route right over the center right before taking a hit. That's great processing and a great read to nullify the pass-rush, move the sticks and put the offense in scoring position.

Pocket caving in, nice job by Fernando Mendoza to get this throw off and to the WR without being able to finish it #Raiderspic.twitter.com/iRsd6lLuY6

- Matt Holder (@MHolder95) July 23, 2026

This next rep builds on the last one as it's another good decision and throw under pressure.

Miami's coverage is simpler this time, showing a one-high look pre-snap and staying in it post-snap. It appears as if this is supposed to be a three-deep, three-under fire zone where the WILL linebacker blitzes off the edge since the defensive end loops inside and the defensive tackle stays in the B-gap on the line game up front. So, the defense is a little out of whack here, but the important aspect is that they have three deep third defenders like a Cover 3 call.

Meanwhile, Indiana is in a two-by-two formation and has a mirrored passing concept where the outside receivers have go routes that they can convert into curls and the slots are attacking the seams. A mirrored concept means that the route combinations are the same on both sides of the formation and is designed so that the quarterback can pick a side and attack a matchup that he likes.

Since the boundary cornerback (top of the screen here) starts bailing before the ball is hiked, while the field side corner is within five yards of the line of scrimmage, Mendoza starts his read to the wide side of the field and is likely looking to hit Sarratt on a deep shot. However, that corner ends up bailing post-snap, so he works to the other side of the read.

The reason for that is there's no opportunity for an explosive play, and with the ball on the hashmark, throwing to Sarratt would be much more difficult than attacking the same route against the same type of coverage to the short side of the field. In other words, it's a smart decision because there's no reason to make the pass more challenging.

That being said, the pass-rush is coming with the defensive tackle pushing the center into the quarterback's lap. So, Mendoza has to get the ball out and have enough velocity to get it to Becker without being able to finish the throw. The latter is why the pass ends up being low, but Mendoza has the arm strength to still get the ball to Becker, and the placement being low and outside actually helps the receiver use his body to keep the corner from being able to break up the pass.

Another smart decision and good throw under pressure to move the sticks.

The National Championship run

Great read by Fernando Mendoza to work off the RB's and LG's block, and then it's all heart from there#RaiderNationpic.twitter.com/8BqX5nMdIt

- Matt Holder (@MHolder95) July 23, 2026

To shift gears for a second, a breakdown of the National Championship wouldn't be complete without dissecting the famous run mentioned above.

It's fourth down, and Indiana calls an RPO where the quarterback can throw a quick pass to one of the receivers or call his own number on the QB draw. With Miami showing a five-man box and man coverage pre-snap where the outside receivers are facing press coverage and two defenders can bracket each of the slot receivers, the pre-snap read favors the draw. That decision gets confirmed post-snap when neither slot fade nor short curl routes are open.

As a result, Mendoza takes off and starts veering toward the middle of the field. However, the center starts to lose control of the defensive tackle, while the lead blockers (the running back and left guard) both block the middle linebacker. So, the safety is unblocked and crashing downhill. In other words, the lane opens up outside of the hashmarks.

Mendoza recognizes that and pivots outside, hurdles the center's legs to follow his blocking and pick up the first down. It's really just a matter of heart and wanting it more from there, as he breaks a couple of tackles, runs over a linebacker and puts his body on the line by stretching out to get the ball in the paint and give Indiana a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter. That ended up being the difference in the game.

3rd and 7 with Indiana holding onto a 3-point lead, Fernando Mendoza hits Becker with a back-shoulder throw to set up a FG#Raiderspic.twitter.com/KdwXQ0AfIR

- Matt Holder (@MHolder95) July 23, 2026

But the job wasn't finished since the Hurricanes marched down the field on the ensuing drive to make it a three-point game about halfway through the final frame. So, Indiana needed its quarterback to make one more play, and he delivered.

Previously, we saw Mendoza force a back shoulder throw to Becker that was nearly intercepted in the end zone. But he makes up for it and gets retribution here.

Becker does a slightly better job of getting the cornerback turned around this time by giving an inside jab step around the 50-yard line to get the corner to open his hips inside a bit. That forces the corner to play with a little more pace to avoid getting beaten deep and prevents him from getting his head around to locate the ball in the air, creating a little more room for the back-shoulder throw. Granted, this is still pretty tight coverage.

But the defender not having eyes on the quarterback to be able to track the ball is the biggest difference between the previous back-shoulder attempt being a bad decision and this one being worth the risk. Also, Mendoza has much better ball placement on this throw, putting it toward the sideline and where Becker can open to make the catch and use his body to shield off the defender. That puts Indiana in field goal range, and the rest is history, literally.

Of course, the Hoosiers went on to win by six and hoist the golden trophy, a perfect way to culminate what was a magical season for the Heisman Trophy winner.

Whether this was your first time reading the series or you've followed along with all 16 columns throughout the summer, I owe you a big thank you for supporting my project! This is something I've wanted to do since February, and it wouldn't have been possible without your support. So, thank you again for following along.

Now, let's go watch Fernando Mendoza ball out and become the face of the Raiders for decades to come!