Fernando Mendoza Talks About How His Brother Helped Him Adjust

Written By: Nick Gonzales (@nrgonzales_)

It has been three months since quarterback Fernando Mendoza committed to IU which has given him some time to get acclimated to Bloomington and the team. Mendoza is luckier than other transfers though because his brother, Alberto, already has a year of experience with Curt Cignetti. With Alberto’s assistance, it has made Fernando’s adjustment a lot smoother.

“My brother has been a tremendous resource. We are in practice No. 4, and he is out there dicing the defense up. He's just a fantastic player, so when I am able to lean on him on certain plays, how the play moves, throughout the plays and after plays he's able to give me tips - just little keys that you would get from experience in an offense.

I feel like I have gained that and am getting better every single practice. [It's come from] the likes of coaches [Mike] Shanahan, Chandler [Whitmer] and Alberto, they have all been helping me a ton, so I am really excited about my development,” Fernando said about how his brother, Alberto, has helped him in his transition during his player availability on Tuesday.

Fernando has been working his hardest and studying as much film as he can. And because of Alberto, Fernando was able to study the playbook during winter break before he even arrived on campus. He is excited to be a Hoosier and can’t wait to learn the ins and outs of this intricate offense. Fernando also loves the fact that he can lean on his younger brother who has experience at quarterback in this offense.

“My brother and I, we do everything together. We watch film together. We get better together. We have tough times together. So, it’s been great and he’s been a stepping stone to me learning the offense and my early steps here in spring ball. I can’t thank him enough and he was definitely a pushing edge. And when he gave me the good, and ‘hey, let’s come to IU,’ it was even more of a push to come to IU,” Fernando responded on his relationship with Alberto and if it was a drawing factor in his decision.

Fernando is beyond grateful to have his brother by his side to help him adjust. It has made him feel a lot more comfortable in the offense and everyone seems to be meshing well. Having Alberto accompany him in his journey has benefited him greatly.

“Personally, I feel like I need more reps to get to that mastery level, but that is why it is great having a veteran in the room like [brother] Alberto [Mendoza] and then also having a great coach in Coach Whitmer,” stated Fernando during Tuesday’s player availability.

Along with his brother, the rest of the team has been extremely friendly, which has helped ease Mendoza into his new environment. He never expected to cross paths with his brother because when he was at Cal his brother was committed to JMU. Now they’re on the same team and the Mendoza brothers are ecstatic about the journey they are taking together.