Fernando Mendoza has had a good run with Indiana football, and now he’s done it with legitimate competition.
The efficiency record Mendoza broke last week against Indiana State was nearly again broken as the Hoosiers beat No. 8 Illinois, 63-10. He was 21 for 23 for 267 yards passing and five touchdowns, and wasn’t needed in the run game.
Perhaps Illinois was trying to soften the blow during its news conferences this week. The Illini offered high praise for Mendoza, even saying, “Dude is a NFL quarterback.” Their defense was top-5 in scoring nationally, allowing 7.3 points per game, gave up 63. Sixty-three.
And Mendoza was responsible for 35 of those to four different players: Omar Cooper Jr. for 11 yards, E.J. Williams Jr. for 11 yards, Riley Nowakowski on a tight end screen for 43 yards and Elijah Sarratt for 9 yards — all before halftime — then to him for 5 yards before Mendoza gave way to his brother, Alberto. Heck, Illinois coach Brett Bielema said during the week that Cooper and Sarratt made up one of the best receiving duos in the Big Ten.
With standout receivers and an offensive line that gives him time, unlike what he had at Cal last season, Mendoza is making good on what had NFL scouts thinking of him as a potential first-round pick. Before then, he could be invited to New York for the Heisman Trophy celebration.
As he’s pacing, he’ll have the eye-popping stats that some voters like. He has a win for his resume with opportunities for more — games at top-10 teams Oregon and Penn State would be proving grounds. His team seemingly should win nine games, or even 10, in the convincing fashion they’ve won the first four — IU has a 46.5 average margin of victory, and that’s with only beating Old Dominion by 13.
Here’s Mendoza’s stat line through four games: 4-0, 76 of 99 (76.8%), 975 yards, 14 TDs, 0 INTS, 206.16 rating; 76 yards rushing, 2 TDs, 22 attempts. And here are his odds:
Fernando Mendoza odds to win Heisman Trophy. Indiana quarterback has second-best odds
Mendoza has 9-1 odds to win the Heisman Trophy, per BetMGM, which is second in college football. Only Oklahoma quarterback John Mateer (7-1) is better, but the Sooners face an SEC gauntlet to close the season. So, Mendoza has a 10% chance at winning the Heisman Trophy.
Others included: Oregon QB Dante Moore and Georgia QB Gunner Stockton each at 12-1, Miami QB Carson Beck at 14-1 and Texas A&M QB Marcel Reed at 15-1.
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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Fernando Mendoza Heisman Trophy odds: Indiana quarterback stats
