Sports
Projecting Tuesday’s CFP top 12: No surprises, but Rivalry Week looms
Surprise — there were no surprises.
After a ho-hum Week 13 that featured only two games between two ranked opponents, there wasn’t any movement in this week’s top 12 projection, but there are two questions looming over the committee as it debates its fourth of six rankings to be revealed on Tuesday night (7 p.m. ET/ESPN):
Here’s a prediction of what the group might do in the latest ranking on Tuesday night:
Projecting the top 12
1. Ohio State Buckeyes (11-0)
Why they could be here: A dominant win against a now sub.-500 Rutgers team isn’t going to change the way the committee views Ohio State — as the most complete team in the country. Ohio State entered Saturday leading the country in total efficiency and ranked in the top three in both offensive and defensive efficiency. Wins against No. 17 Texas and No. 21 Illinois (which lost to Wisconsin on Saturday) are its only ones against CFP top 25 opponents, but a road win against Washington is also respected in the room. The committee has specifically noted the elite play of receivers Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate — and even with both sidelined with injuries on Saturday, Ohio State was able to dismantle the Rutgers defense.
Why they could be lower: Nothing happened on Saturday that would prompt the committee to rethink the Buckeyes’ place at the top, but Ohio State had the worst schedule strength (No. 48) of the top three teams entering Saturday.
Need to know: Although Ohio State and Indiana remain the most likely matchup in the Big Ten championship game — each controls its own destiny — neither clinched a spot in Week 13. Ohio State can clinch a spot with a win against Michigan OR losses by both Indiana and Oregon. The Buckeyes and Hoosiers are joined by Oregon and Michigan with chances to reach the Big Ten title game, but the latter two teams both need help to clinch.
Remaining game: Nov. 29 at Michigan. The Buckeyes are trying to avoid a fifth straight loss to their rivals.
2. Indiana Hoosiers (11-0)
Why they could be here: With the Hoosiers on a bye — and both Ohio State and Texas A&M playing unranked, inferior opponents — it’s unlikely there’s any movement at the top again. Indiana has earned the committee’s respect with its double-digit win at Oregon and its top-five rankings for both offensive and defensive efficiency. The group has taken note of Indiana’s consistent dominance, with its most glaring struggles coming on the road at Iowa and Penn State, both notoriously difficult places to win. Indiana entered Week 13 ranked No. 3 in the country in ESPN’s game control metric.
Why they could be higher: Given how the committee has voted and deliberated through three rankings, Indiana likely needs Ohio State to lose to Michigan — or IU needs to beat the Buckeyes in the Big Ten title game — to earn the top spot.
Need to know: Indiana can clinch a spot in the Big Ten championship game with a win next week or an Ohio State loss.
Remaining game: Nov. 28 at Purdue. The Hoosiers had a bye to prepare for their regular-season finale against their in-state rivals.
3. Texas A&M Aggies (11-0)
Why they could be here: It’s not because they manhandled Samford, an overmatched 1-11 FCS team. It’s mostly because the Aggies are clinging to a 41-40 win at No. 9 Notre Dame, the highlight of their undefeated résumé. The Nov. 8 win at Mizzou, which came when Tigers starting quarterback Beau Pribula was sidelined with an injury, is a borderline top-25 win that was devalued somewhat on Saturday by Mizzou’s loss to Oklahoma. Texas A&M still leads the nation in ESPN’s strength of record metric, which gives the average top 25 team just a 2.2% chance of achieving the same undefeated record against the same opponents.
Why they could be lower: It’s unlikely anything will change in the third ranking, but if Texas A&M loses to Texas — and doesn’t win the SEC — it will be interesting to see where the Aggies fall on Selection Day. They didn’t face Alabama or Georgia during the regular season, playing just the 12th-most difficult schedule in the SEC, according to ESPN Analytics — ahead of only Vandy, Tennessee, Ole Miss and Missouri. The Aggies rank just outside the top 10 in both offensive and defensive efficiency.
Need to know: The Aggies will clinch a spot in the SEC championship game with a win against Texas OR if both Alabama and Ole Miss lose.
Remaining game: Nov. 28 at Texas. The Longhorns will have home-field advantage on Friday night after Thanksgiving.
4. Georgia Bulldogs (10-1)
Why they could be here: The Bulldogs are here because of their 35-10 drubbing of Texas on Nov. 15 — not because they overpowered Charlotte 35-3 on Saturday. Georgia has one loss and Alabama has two, so the Bulldogs’ head-to-head loss to the Tide on Sept. 27 was overcome in the third ranking. Wins against Tennessee, Ole Miss and Texas give Georgia one of the best résumés in the country. Georgia entered Saturday ranked No. 4 in ESPN’s strength of record metric and No. 12 in strength of schedule — ahead of Ohio State, Indiana and Texas A&M.
Why they could be higher: It would be surprising to see the committee move Georgia this week — especially since everyone played weaker opponents and Texas Tech was on a bye — but if Texas A&M loses to Texas this Friday, it will open the door for debate between the Bulldogs and Aggies. The committee would compare Texas as a common opponent, and Georgia beat the Longhorns soundly. Georgia also has more wins against ranked opponents (a win against Georgia Tech could add another) and a slightly tougher schedule. Some committee members might also think Georgia has a slightly better loss (Alabama) than A&M (Texas).
Need to know: According to ESPN Research, Georgia can clinch a spot in the SEC title game in Week 14 with an Alabama loss OR a Texas A&M loss.
Remaining game: Nov. 28 vs. Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets (9-2) pushed their in-state rival to eight overtimes last year.
5. Texas Tech Red Raiders (10-1)
Why they could be here: The Red Raiders had a bye week and are “highly regarded by this committee,” chair Hunter Yurachek said following the third ranking. Dominant wins at Utah and against BYU have elevated Texas Tech in the ranking, and the committee has also been impressed with the Red Raiders’ defense, particularly up front. Texas Tech’s lone loss was Oct. 18 at Arizona State, which popped into the latest ranking at No. 25, helping to ease some of that stumble.
Why they could be lower: With both Texas Tech and Ole Miss off on Saturday, it’s unlikely their positions will change in the fourth ranking.
Need to know: Texas Tech is within arm’s reach of a first-round bye, which makes it highly unlikely the Red Raiders would fall out of the playoff even if they finished as the Big 12 runner-up.
Remaining game: Nov. 29 at West Virginia. It’s on the road at a notoriously difficult venue, but the Red Raiders have a 91.6% chance to win, according to ESPN Analytics.
6. Ole Miss Rebels (10-1)
Why they could be here: The committee has had Texas Tech ahead of Ole Miss in part because of a better résumé, though the Red Raiders have two top-25 wins (BYU and Utah), and Ole Miss also has two (Oklahoma and Tulane). The Rebels’ win against the Sooners looks better than Oregon’s win against USC, as the Sooners are a top-10 team and were able to hold off Missouri on Saturday to stay that way.
Why they could be lower: The committee members could consider bumping Oregon ahead of Ole Miss, as they’ve been waiting for a performance like Saturday’s against another CFP contender and the Ducks delivered against USC. Oregon and Ole Miss are extremely close in both strength of record and strength of schedule, and they both lost to a top-four team. Ole Miss also has a win against Tulane, which is now the leader for a Group of 5 playoff spot, and the win against the Sooners was on the road, whereas Oregon beat USC at home. With everything else so comparable, those are some small details that might continue to lean in the Rebels’ favor — if maybe for only another week.
Need to know: The Rebels will clinch a spot in the SEC championship game if they win the Egg Bowl AND both Texas A&M and Alabama lose.
Remaining game: Nov. 28 at Mississippi State. The Rebels don’t have much if any margin for error against their in-state rivals. A second loss would put Ole Miss into a debate it might not win, given its schedule strength ranks No. 15 in the SEC.
7. Oregon Ducks (10-1)
Why they could be here: The Ducks added a much-needed statement win to their résumé on Saturday against USC, solidifying their spot as the Big Ten’s third playoff team. Assuming three-loss USC is still ranked on Tuesday night, though, Saturday’s victory is the Ducks’ only win against a CFP top 25 team. Big Ten opponents Northwestern, Iowa and Minnesota are all above .500, which the committee values, but Ole Miss has a slightly better résumé with its wins against Oklahoma and Tulane.
Why they could be higher: The Ducks have won five straight since their 30-20 home loss against Indiana on Oct. 11, but USC was the kind of strong performance against a top-15 team the committee has been waiting for. And they did it without several key injured players on both sides of the ball.
Need to know: With USC dropping out of the playoff picture, the biggest threat to Oregon is gone, but Michigan can still disrupt the picture in the final week. According to ESPN Research, if Michigan beats rival Ohio State AND Indiana OR Oregon loses, the Wolverines will clinch a spot in the conference championship game. Which team they face depends on how those other results unfold, but they could play any of those three — Indiana, Oregon or Ohio State.
Remaining game: Nov. 29 at Washington. This isn’t an easy road trip, as the bowl-bound Huskies have had a respectable season in the second year under coach Jedd Fisch.
8. Oklahoma Sooners (9-2)
Why they could be here: A win against what was the committee’s No. 22 team in Missouri should further solidify Oklahoma’s foothold in the No. 8 spot because the defense was dominant on a day the offense did just enough. That was Oklahoma’s third straight win against a CFP top 25 opponent, including back-to-back road wins against Tennessee and Alabama. The Sooners also earned a ranked win on Sept. 6 against Michigan, which continues to be valuable after the Wolverines kept their playoff hopes alive on Saturday with a win against Maryland.
Why they could be lower: It’s clear the committee likes Notre Dame, and the Irish hammered Syracuse 70-7. Oklahoma’s defense is one of the best in the country, but the Sooners’ offense is No. 43 in efficiency — well below No. 6 Notre Dame. It would be difficult to justify flipping the Irish above the Sooners, though, given that Syracuse is now 3-8 and OU beat a ranked SEC team on top of having a stronger overall résumé.
Need to know: If the playoff were today, the debate between Oklahoma and Notre Dame would be settled on the field — in Norman, where the Sooners would have home-field advantage in the first round. The No. 8 spot is the last team in the ranking to host a first-round game.
Remaining game: Nov. 29 vs. LSU. The Sooners need to avoid what would be a devastating upset to the four-loss Tigers.
9. Notre Dame Fighting Irish (9-2)
Why they could be here: The Irish have won nine straight since an 0-2 start, and the committee has considered Notre Dame’s narrow losses to Texas A&M and Miami important factors in its deliberations. One reason Notre Dame was ranked ahead of two-loss Alabama in the third ranking was because the Irish lost by a combined four points to two ranked opponents. Alabama’s season-opening loss to Florida State and its continued inability to run the ball have held it back. The Irish racked up some style points in Saturday’s drubbing of Syracuse, but the committee has already rewarded Notre Dame for its running game and staunch defense. On Saturday, the Irish scored three touchdowns (two on defense and one on special teams) before the offense even took the field. Notre Dame’s best wins are against USC, Navy and Pitt.
Why they could be higher: If the committee gives Notre Dame another boost, it would be because the Irish have been more consistently dominant on offense than the Sooners. Oklahoma, though, has played tougher competition than Notre Dame over the past few weeks and has the edge in overall schedule strength and strength of record.
Need to know: Although Notre Dame appears safe — and it would certainly be a shock to see it fall out of the playoff field — there is still a nightmare scenario for the Irish. If Alabama wins the SEC and jumps ahead of Notre Dame, pushing the Irish to the No. 10 spot, they could be in trouble if the Big 12 has two playoff teams. If BYU wins the Big 12, and Texas Tech joins it in the top nine as the Big 12 runner-up — then a team currently in the top 10 has to be excluded. The No. 11 team will get bumped out for the ACC champ and the No. 12 team will get knocked out for the Group of 5 champion.
Remaining game: Nov. 29 at Stanford. The Irish have a 95% chance to win, according to ESPN Analytics.
10. Alabama Crimson Tide (9-2)
Why they could be here: The committee made it clear last week that Alabama’s struggles on the ground have been an issue all season. It was one factor that separated No. 9 Notre Dame from No. 10 Alabama in last Tuesday’s ranking. Alabama’s 259 rushing yards in a lopsided 56-0 win against a 3-9 FCS team in Eastern Illinois aren’t going to sway anyone in the room enough to move the Tide up. Alabama still has one of the best résumés in the country, including a win against No. 4 Georgia during a streak of four straight CFP top 25 wins during the middle of the season. The loss to Oklahoma will keep Alabama behind the Sooners as long as the committee deems them comparable.
Why they could be higher: If Alabama’s résumé wasn’t enough to keep the Tide ahead of Notre Dame last week, it’s unlikely to change this week. Alabama entered Saturday No. 8 in strength of record and No. 2 in strength of schedule, both ahead of Notre Dame.
Need to know: With Tennessee’s win on Saturday, Alabama can now clinch a spot in the SEC title game with a win against Auburn.
Remaining game: Nov. 29 at Auburn. The Iron Bowl is a must-win for the Tide.
11. BYU Cougars (10-1)
Why they could be here: With the win at Cincinnati, BYU passed its toughest remaining test of the regular season and earned another road win against a team that was ranked by the committee, albeit for a fleeting moment. BYU’s Oct. 18 win against Utah will continue to resonate in the room after Utah found a way to beat a pesky K-State team. The head-to-head win against the Utes will also keep BYU ahead of them. BYU’s only loss was on the road against No. 5 Texas Tech, but it was a poor performance that raised some eyebrows in the committee meeting room.
Why they could be lower: It would be hard for the committee to justify moving BYU given the head-to-head against Utah and one fewer loss. And Alabama’s résumé will make it very difficult for the Cougars to move up.
Need to know: If the playoff were today, BYU would be bumped out of the field during the seeding process to make room for the ACC champion, which is still projected to be ranked outside of the committee’s top 12 but is guaranteed a spot as one of the five highest-ranked conference champions.
Remaining game: Nov. 29 vs. UCF. The 5-6 Knights will be playing for bowl eligibility.
12. Utah Utes (9-2)
Why they could be here: After Utah found a way to escape K-State on Saturday, its only losses are to the Big 12’s best teams — Texas Tech and BYU — and the committee considers who a team lost to as part of its deliberations. The Utes’ best wins are against Arizona State and Cincinnati, but they lose the head-to-head tiebreaker to BYU.
Why they could be lower: The committee could reward Miami’s convincing road win at Virginia Tech and bump the Canes up a notch because they played far better defense — albeit against a 3-8 ACC team. Utah allowed 472 rushing yards and 11.2 yards per carry against Kansas State — on its home field. It was Miami’s third straight win by at least 17 points, showing some of the consistency committee members had been looking for. Miami’s season-opening win against Notre Dame is also better than any win Utah has earned to date.
Need to know: If the playoff were today, Utah would be excluded during the seeding process to make room for the fifth-highest-ranked conference champion, which this week we project will be Tulane.
Remaining game: Nov. 28 at Kansas. At 5-6, the Jayhawks will be playing for bowl eligibility.
Bracket
Based on the rankings above, the seeding would be:
First-round byes
No. 1 Ohio State (Big Ten champ)
No. 2 Indiana
No. 3 Texas A&M (SEC champ)
No. 4 Georgia
First-round games
On campus, Dec. 19 and 20
No. 12 Tulane (American champ) at No. 5 Texas Tech (Big 12 champ)
No. 11 Miami (ACC champ) at No. 6 Ole Miss
No. 10 Alabama at No. 7 Oregon
No. 9 Notre Dame at No. 8 Oklahoma
Quarterfinal games
At the Goodyear Cotton Bowl, Capital One Orange Bowl, Rose Bowl Presented by Prudential and Allstate Sugar Bowl on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1.
No. 12 Tulane/No. 5 Texas Tech winner vs. No. 4 Georgia
No. 11 Miami/No. 6 Ole Miss winner vs. No. 3 Texas A&M
No. 10 Alabama/No. 7 Oregon winner vs. No. 2 Indiana
No. 9 Notre Dame/No. 8 Oklahoma winner vs. No. 1 Ohio State
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Fernando Mendoza, the 2025 Heisman Trophy winner and projected No. 1 overall pick, is poised to begin his NFL career under the mentorship of one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time.
Mendoza, who led Indiana to a national championship during an undefeated 16–0 season, revealed this week that he spoke with Tom Brady during his official visit with the Las Vegas Raiders, who own the top pick in this year’s draft.
Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Fernando Mendoza celebrates after defeating the Miami Hurricanes in the College Football Playoff national championship game at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla., on Jan. 19, 2026. (Mark J. Rebilas/Imagn Images)
Appearing on the “Dan Patrick Show” Wednesday, Mendoza revealed the advice Brady, a minority owner of the Raiders, shared with him during their meeting.
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“It was fantastic. He gave me the message that he’s going to push me, and he’s not going to be all lovey-dovey. And that if the Raiders draft me, he’s going to be a mentor and wants to pour into whatever quarterback the Raiders have — whether it’s me, whether they draft somebody else.”
Mendoza added that the offseason addition of veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins presents another learning opportunity for the young signal-caller.
Tom Brady attends the Super Bowl between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots at Levi’s Stadium Feb. 8, 2026. (Mark J. Rebilas/Imagn Images)
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“Well, if I’m lucky enough to go to the Raiders, I think it’ll be a great opportunity to learn from someone who’s had so much success throughout the years and who, I think, has a very similar playing style as me.”
Mendoza will likely not take starting reps in Las Vegas. Brady and general manager John Spytek have said numerous times they believe in not playing a young quarterback right away.
Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza passes against Miami during the first half of the College Football Playoff national championship game in Miami Gardens, Fla., on Jan. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
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The Miami native will not be in Pittsburgh to walk across the stage and be welcomed into the NFL by Commissioner Roger Goodell on Thursday night. He will instead be home with his family, citing his mother’s multiple sclerosis diagnosis.
Fox News Digital’s Ryan Canfield contributed to this report.
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Mendoza Mania has arrived in the NFL.
The projected No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft, Fernando Mendoza brings one of football’s most unexpected stories to the pros.
Legendary football agent Leigh Steinberg, who has represented an NFL-record eight first overall draft picks, believes what sets Mendoza apart from the other hyped prospects is his words.
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“The way he relates to people,” Steinberg said was the most unique part about Mendoza, in an interview with Fox News Digital.
“He seems to have a really nice touch in dealing with teammates. It seems to be a natural leader. He relates well in interviews. He relates well in everything. And so, the job of a franchise quarterback is to represent the franchise, and he becomes the most visible face of a franchise. And you know, he’s handsome. He speaks well, and I think he’s sort of an ideal representative or spokesman for the team.”
How did a kid from Florida who know one saw coming become a Heisman Trophy winner, national champion, and the NFL’s next big thing?
Mendoza’s grandparents fled communist Cuba
The reason Fernando Mendoza is in the U.S. and making his mark on football history is because of a bold decision by his grandparents decades ago.
After Fidel Castro seized control of Cuba and installed a communist regime, all four of Mendoza’s grandparents fled the country and came to America.
“We all thought it was temporary,” Mendoza’s maternal grandfather Alberto Espino previously told The Washington Post of the “There was no way the United States would allow a communist regime 90 miles away.”
But Castro’s reign endured, so Espino and the Mendozas remained in the U.S. and built their life as Americans. That meant American sports.
Mendoza’s parents were star athletes
Both of his parents grew up in Miami, Florida as the children of Cuban refugees.
Mendoza’s father, Fernando Mendoza Sr., was a rower at Brown University and a 1987 Junior World Championships gold medalist.
But Mendoza’s father also played football when he was younger, and was teammates with Miami Hurricanes head coach Mario Cristobal at Christopher Columbus High School during the 1980s. Mendoza would go on to defeat his father’s former teammate in this year’s CFP national championship game.
Meanwhile, his mother, Elsa Mendoza, played tennis at the University of Miami.
When Mendoza was a child, his mother was diagnosed with a serious disease
Mendoza was born in Boston in 2003 as the first of his parents’ three children, before his family moved back to Miami, Florida where he would grow up.
But when Mendoza was only about four years old, his mother was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. It’s a chronic, autoimmune disease of the central nervous system that can affect the brain and spinal cord. She has spent the last few years in a wheelchair.
Elsa Mendoza wrote about the experience in a 2015 letter to her sons that was published in The Player’s Tribune.
“I was diagnosed about 18 years ago, but of course you never knew that. You and Alberto were so young, and I was doing fine….. and mostly I didn’t want you to worry. It just felt like this impossible thing to place on you guys. On my sweet boys. And then I kept doing fine until about 10 years ago, when we went skiing and I broke my ankle and knee,” she wrote.
“But even after that, I wasn’t quite ready to tell you — only that my leg hadn’t healed all the way, which is why your mom had her limp. It wasn’t until five years ago, when I got Covid, that things started to go downhill in a way where there was no more hiding it. It was during football season, and I realized I wasn’t going to be able to travel. And the thought of you wondering if I supported you any less, because suddenly I wasn’t at your games? I hated that. So that’s when I knew we had to sit you and your brother down.”
She went on to recall, “how hard of a conversation it ended up being. ‘Your mom has this degenerative disease … and while we don’t know how it will progress, it’s going to start to affect us in a few ways. But it won’t affect us in the ways that matter. We’ll have each other, and love each other, and be there for each other. I promise.'”
He grew up Catholic, and went to an elite Catholic school
As a young boy, Mendoza would gather mangoes from his grandparents’ yard and sell them door-to-door to his neighbors.
Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza looks to throw a pass during the school’s NFL pro day in Bloomington, Indiana, on April 1, 2026. (AJ Mast/AP Photo)
Not only did he embrace capitalism as a young man, but he also embraced Catholicism.
He later followed in his father’s footsteps of playing football at Christopher Columbus High School — an elite, $18,000-a-year all-boys private Catholic school with a football program.
As the team’s starting quarterback his senior year, he led his team to an 11-3 record and the 2021 FHSAA Class 8A state semifinals.
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But it wasn’t enough to earn the affection of many college scouts.
As a two-star recruit, Mendoza was ranked the 2,149th-ranked recruit in the country in his high school class. He didn’t receive a single FBS scholarship offer.
He passed on Yale for Cal Berkeley
With limited offers out of college, Mendoza nearly accepted an Ivy League education and non-scholarship football spot at Yale. But instead, he went across the country to try his luck at California, Berkeley.
He wasn’t handed the starting job on day one; instead, he redshirted, studied the game, and quietly earned his business degree from the prestigious Haas School of Business in just three years.
As a quarterback, he earned the starting job in 2023 and 2024, becoming Cal’s all-time leader in completion percentage (66.4%) and tying for 7th in 250-yard passing games.
California Golden Bears quarterback Fernando Mendoza stands on the field after the game against the Arizona Wildcats at FTX Field at California Memorial Stadium in Berkeley, Calif., on Sept. 24, 2022. (Darren Yamashita/USA TODAY Sports)
But his college football career hadn’t even really begun.
The Indiana decision
In 2025, Mendoza made the decision to transfer to Indiana. What followed is considered one of the most unlikely runs in college football history.
He threw for 3,535 yards, 41 touchdowns, and only 6 interceptions, completing over 72% of his passes, while also adding seven rushing touchdowns, and won the Heisman Trophy.
“It’s very often not until the end of their [college] career that they show exactly those qualities. So a lot of maturation happened,” Steinberg said of Mendoza’s senior-year surge. “There have been a number of players who were late bloomers… you’re getting them at the height of their arc, and they put it all together. It takes time to read defenses and see the field.”
Then when the playoffs started, he cemented his name in college football history. He threw eight touchdowns with only five incompletions in the initial playoff games against Alabama in the Rose Bowl and Oregon in the Fiesta Bowl.
In the national championship game, played in his home town of Miami against his hometown university Miami Hurricanes, he was named the CFP National Championship Offensive Player of the Game, delivering a crucial 12-yard fourth-quarter touchdown run to seal the title.
Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Fernando Mendoza holds up the trophy after the College Football Playoff National Championship game at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla., on Jan. 19, 2026. (Mark J. Rebilas/Imagn Images)
Indiana became the first time in modern college football history to go a perfect 16-0 behind Mendoza’s leadership, making a case for one of the greatest CFB quarterback seasons ever.
Now the real work begins
With the Las Vegas Raiders set to pick first in the NFL Draft this year, Mendoza appears destined for Sin City.
Steinberg believes the fit will work out well football wise and business wise.
“He’s a perfect pick for the Raiders because he’s someone they can build a franchise around. He seems to have the proper leadership skills and motivational ability to lead a team. He’s high character, he’s got physical size. He’s got great arm strength. He’s indicated a number of times that he can bring the team back in critical circumstances,” Steinberg said.
“As a marketing proposition, Las Vegas is the hottest sports town as there is in America… It’s a good environment to be in with supportive fans and companies for sponsorships and endorsements.”
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Mendoza has already filed 12 trademark applications. These filings include his name, “Fernando Mendoza,” “Mendoza,” “Flippin’,” and “HE15MENDOZA,” aimed at covering athletic apparel and merchandising.
“By picking 12 different areas, that pretty much covered the field. And that means that nobody can go ahead and put together distinctive Mendoza [merchandise] without dealing with him,” Steinberg said.
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New Sri Lanka head coach Gary Kirsten says understanding the island’s cricketing identity will be central to rebuilding the team for the World Cup.
The 58-year-old former South Africa opener started last week on a two-year contract that will see him in charge for the 50-over World Cup next year.
“I need to understand the culture really well, understand what makes the players tick, understand the environment,” Kirsten told reporters in Colombo.
“I’ve got a lot of learning to do as I go through this journey.”
Kirsten was India coach from 2008 to 2011, taking them to World Cup glory, then coached South Africa from 2011 to 2013.
He was appointed by Sri Lanka after Sanath Jayasuriya left the position before his term was due to expire at the end of June.
Sri Lanka co-hosted the T20 World Cup with eventual winners India but crashed out at the Super Eights stage, their fate sealed by a 61-run defeat to New Zealand.
Kirsten said he would work with translators — but that English “works quite well in cricket” as a language of communication.
“I’ve worked across a lot of different cultures and countries, so I’ve had a bit of experience in that space,” he said.
The 2027 World Cup will be co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.
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