when did fernando mendoza transfer to indiana

Fernando Mendoza announced his decision to transfer to Indiana on December 24, 2024 (Christmas Eve), and officially signed with the Hoosiers on January 24, 2025.

The Transfer Timeline

The journey to Indiana began when Mendoza entered the transfer portal on December 11, 2024 , after spending three seasons with the California Golden Bears. His decision to commit to Indiana came relatively quickly—just 13 days later on Christmas Eve—when he chose the Hoosiers over powerhouse programs like Georgia and Miami.

Why Indiana?

Mendoza's transfer to Indiana brought together several compelling factors that made Bloomington the perfect fit:

• Family connection : His younger brother, Alberto Mendoza, was already a freshman backup quarterback on the Indiana roster, which played a key role in his decision

• Developmental opportunity : Mendoza told IndyStar in January that "Indiana was the best place for me to make that jump developmentally," emphasizing his belief that he still had "a ton of things to get better at"

• Program success : Indiana had just completed their first-ever College Football Playoff appearance under Coach Curt Cignetti, creating an attractive opportunity to step into a starting role on a rising program

• Perfect timing : The Hoosiers needed a proven successor to sixth-year senior Kurtis Rourke, who had just earned second-team All-Big Ten honors and finished ninth in Heisman Trophy voting

Mendoza's Credentials

When Mendoza committed to Indiana, he was ranked as the No. 3 quarterback and 12th-best player overall in the transfer portal according to ESPN's rankings (No. 4 quarterback according to 247Sports' composite rankings). During his final season at Cal, he threw for 3,004 yards with 16 touchdowns and six interceptions while completing 68.7% of his passes across 11 games. He started 19 games over two seasons for the Golden Bears after redshirting his freshman year in 2022.

TLDR: Fernando Mendoza announced his commitment to Indiana on Christmas Eve 2024 (December 24) and officially signed on January 24, 2025, choosing the Hoosiers over Georgia and Miami. The transfer was influenced by his brother already being on the team, Indiana's developmental program under Coach Cignetti, and the opportunity to start for a College Football Playoff contender. Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.