Indiana football had a moment on Wednesday. 28 Hoosiers took the field in the Mellancamp Pavillion one final time, but it was Fernando Mendoza’s latest gift to his teammates that stood out.
Most of the buzz around IU’s Pro Day was for the future number one pick, but he and his pass catching teammates showed off one last time in Bloomington.
“it was a little bit moment of gratitude, you know, looking at all those guys and really seeing special moments I’ve had with each individual, whether it’s Riley (Nowakowski), whether it’s Holden (Staes), any of the receivers, the running backs, all those guys, and revisit all the good times we have together on and off the field is very special because it’s really unlikely we’ll all play on the same team.” Mendoza said after an impressive throwing session.
Mendoza extended his throwing program to ensure that all of his teammates could shine.
“The main goal today was to serve my teammates and I think that I was able to do that, be able to put them in a position where they’re able to make plays, show what they got, and very excited for them in the future.” Mendoza said.
Any one who was there saw the brief minute after the throwing session that these teammates took time to appriciate the present moment before they went their separate ways.
“I think we’ll get together a little bit tonight and, you know, kind of say our final goodbye. So, it’s not goodbye forever yet, but it definitely is a little bit bittersweet.” Tight end Riley Nowkowski said. “You get to the end of the end of the road and it’s like, ‘oh, we did great.’ We did everything we sought out to do. But it’s the end of the road. So that that definitely that definitely is a little bit sad just knowing that I won’t be able to step on the field and get calls from (Pat Coogan) anymore or see (Omar Cooper) make some fantastic catch or Elijah (Sarratt) have a back shoulder, KB or Rome break a run. So that definitely is a little bit sad, but you know, it’s happy. I’m happy that everybody’s going on to bigger and better things.”
For many Hoosier fans, Wednesday was just that. A good-bye for now to a team that brought so much happiness and excitment in 2025.