Fernando Mendoza went from winning the College Football Playoff National Championship with the Indiana Hoosiers to joining a team that was tied for the worst record in the NFL last season in the Las Vegas Raiders.
But the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft sees a similarity between the two teams: the traits of new Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak and Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti.
“For example, [in practice], you make a big completion, and you’re looking forward to seeing it on film, and then both of those guys would be like, ‘Come on, really? You took an extra hitch,’ or ‘Come on, instead of five yards you were at four and a half,’” Mendoza said on the latest episode of “The Rush With Maxx Crosby,” which is hosted by the quarterback’s teammate, Raiders star pass rusher Maxx Crosby. “And you’re like, ‘What? I literally took the perfect footwork, perfect read, perfect throw, awesome, explosive play.’ And you’re like, ‘Bro, you got to give me a break, what’s this guy talking about?’
“Then you see, especially with Cignetti, having spent a whole season with him, like when he’s riding me on all these things in fall camp, I’m like, ‘You’ve got to be kidding me,’ and then the season you see it show up. And it’s like, ‘OK, that pass was completed by this much because I was at the right depth or because I didn’t take the extra hitch.’
“You see the same similarities with Coach Kubiak pushing and really making sure you’re doing everything, rather than giving you a pat on the back, finding something to improve, because I have a lot to improve on.”
The 39-year-old Kubiak is embarking on his first head-coaching stint, most recently serving as the offensive coordinator for the reigning Super Bowl-champion Seattle Seahawks (2025) and New Orleans Saints (2024). Kubiak was previously the passing game coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers (2023) and Denver Broncos (2022), among other positions.
Meanwhile, Cignetti is doing one of the best coaching jobs, if not the best job, in college football history at Indiana. Following a three-year stretch during which the Hoosiers won just nine games (a combined 9-27 record from 2021-23), they went 11-2 in their first season under Cignetti, marking the first double-digit-winning season in program history and making their first appearance in the College Football Playoff. Then, Indiana put together a 16-0 campaign in 2025, capped off by winning the first national championship in program history.
As for who was under center for Indiana last season, Mendoza transferred to play for the Hoosiers after three seasons with the California Golden Bears (2022-24). Starting all 16 games for Indiana, Mendoza totaled 3,535 passing yards, 41 passing touchdowns, six interceptions and a 182.9 passer rating, while completing 72.0% of his passes. He also rushed for 276 yards and seven touchdowns.
Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza runs onto the field at the College Football Playoff National Championship Game on Jan. 19, 2026, in Miami. (L.E. Baskow/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
Moreover, Mendoza threw for a combined eight touchdowns, completed 86.1% of his passes and posted a 245.5 passer rating over Indiana’s quarterfinal and semifinal round wins over the Alabama Crimson Tide (38-3) and Oregon Ducks (56-22). Mendoza earned 2025 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year honors and won the 2025 Heisman Trophy Award.
“One thing that I think Coach Cignetti and Coach Kubiak both preach, in a way, is that everyone’s equal,” Mendoza said. “And how I see that as a quarterback is killing the ego. Making sure that no matter what success I had at Indiana or what future success or whatever expectation, there’s no ego there. The only motivation is getting better.”
As for Mendoza’s new teammates, Las Vegas signed center and three-time Pro Bowler Tyler Linderbaum (three-year, $81 million deal) and former Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jalen Nailor (three-year, $35 million deal) in free agency, among others. It also has star tight end Brock Bowers — who earned All-Pro honors in his 2024 rookie campaign — running back Ashton Jeanty (the No. 6 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft) and wide receiver Tre Tucker, who totaled a career-high in receptions (57), receiving yards (696) and receiving touchdowns (five) in 2025.
Of course, Mendoza could potentially begin his rookie season as the Raiders’ backup quarterback, as they signed veteran Kirk Cousins to a two-year deal in April.
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