Indiana football lands 3,000-yard Cal transfer QB after CFP loss
Yesterday at 10:54 AM
After engineering the best season in Indiana football history, Curt Cignetti is not ready to slow down. To ease the loss of quarterback Kurtis Rourke, Indiana made another splash in the transfer portal by adding Fernando Mendoza from Cal.
Mendoza committed to Indiana from the transfer portal on Monday, per ESPN’s Pete Thamel. After spending the past two seasons with the Bears, he has up to two more years of eligibility remaining. In 2024, he threw for 3,004 yards, 16 touchdowns, and six interceptions.
While losing Rourke will lead to a tough transition period, Mendoza showed enough improvement in 2024 to prove his potential. After a rough freshman season in 2023, Cal brought in former ULM and North Texas quarterback Chandler Rogers to compete with Mendoza from the transfer portal. Many expected Rogers to supplant him but Mendoza started 11 of the 12 regular season games and led the Bears to a respectable 6-5 record.
Should Mendoza start in 2025, he would be Cignetti’s second transfer quarterback in as many years. In his first year in Bloomington, Cignetti brought Rourke, the former MAC Offensive Player of the Year, in from Ohio. Mendoza will not have too much competition for the job after Rourke’s backup, Tayven Jackson, entered the transfer portal on Dec. 21.
Indiana football prepares for significant turnover
Fernando Mendoza becoming Indiana’s next quarterback was a big move, but it will just be one of many for a transitioning Indiana team. Despite Cignetti’s success in 2024, he will be in for a bigger test in 2025 in his quest to return to the College Football Playoff.
In addition to Rourke and Jackson, Indiana will also lose running backs Ty Son Lawton and Justice Ellison, both of whom have exhausted their eligibility. Leading receiver Elijah Sarratt, who has one year of eligibility remaining, has yet to make his official decision on a potential return.
However, Mendoza will be joined by former Maryland running back Roman Hemby as an incoming transfer. The two newcomers will look to continue building on the success Cignetti established in 2024 as the nation’s highest-scoring offense.
The post Indiana football lands 3,000-yard Cal transfer QB after CFP loss appeared first on ClutchPoints.
