Fernando Mendoza's close-knit family has been a consistent support throughout his career. After an impressive 2025 season, the Indiana Hoosiers quarterback announced his decision to enter the 2026 NFL Draft.
Career
Mendoza transferred from California (Cal) to Indiana before the 2025 season. He completed 72% of his passes for 3,535 yards, 41 touchdowns, and 6 interceptions while helping lead the Hoosiers to a 16-0 record and the program's first national championship. He won the Heisman Trophy.
Mendoza's Mother
Mendoza's mother, Elsa, was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2007 and uses a wheelchair, according to Yahoo Sports.
A former tennis player at the University of Miami, she wrote a letter to The Players' Tribune reflecting on raising Fernando and the challenges she faced.
“I was diagnosed about 18 years ago, but of course you never knew that. You and [your brother] 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,” Elsa wrote in a letter to Mendoza in The Players Tribune. “On my sweet boys … 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 … But you’ve made it so much easier. And you’ve done that in the sweetest, strongest, most Fernando way possible — by making me feel the exact opposite of embarrassed. You’ve made me feel seen."
{{/usCountry}}“So that’s when I knew we had to sit you and your brother down … But you’ve made it so much easier. And you’ve done that in the sweetest, strongest, most Fernando way possible — by making me feel the exact opposite of embarrassed. You’ve made me feel seen."
{{/usCountry}}Also Read: Fernando Mendoza to Las Vegas Raiders? Buzz grows ahead of 2026 NFL draft
Father's Legacy
His father, Dr. Fernando Mendoza Sr., is a pediatric emergency medicine physician and medical director at Nicklaus Children's Health System in Miami. Before his medical career, he was a competitive rower who won gold at the 1987 Junior World Championships and rowed at Brown University.
Also Read: What Fernando Mendoza said about having a girlfriend: 'I’d give her my all'
The Role of Family
Mendoza has two younger brothers. Alberto played as backup quarterback at Indiana in 2025 alongside him before transferring to Georgia Tech. Max is in Miami.