100 Days to Kickoff: Alberto Mendoza
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The Jackets have a new face under center this year. His surname is widely known but his personal talent is minimally studied. Alberto Mendoza is a redshirt sophomore from Indiana who spent the last year as signal caller for his older brother, 2025 Heisman Trophy winner, and the overall first pick of the 2026 NFL draft, Fernando Mendoza.
Alberto comes to the Flats with a thin collegiate resume but with a great deal of hardware. In his two years at Indiana, the Hoosiers won both the Big Ten Championship and CFP National Championship. In his high school years, Alberto led his team to back-to-back state championships and picked up a plethora of awards including first-team all-Miami-Dade-County (twice) and Class Four Metro Florida Player of the Year (twice).
At Columbus High, Alberto threw for a total of 4,596 yards and 57 touchdowns, with around a 72% completion percentage his junior and senior years. He exited high school ranked as a 3-star prospect by Rivals, 247Sports, ESPN and On3. He originally committed to James Madison but ultimately was offered the opportunity to follow Curt Cignetti and his staff to Indiana.
In his first year with Indiana, Alberto backed up Kurtis Rourke, a transfer from Ohio. That year, Indiana finished 11-2 overall, eventually falling to Notre Dame in the College Football Playoffs. That season established Indiana as a covetable destination for talent. Alberto’s presence on the roster helped convince his brother to join the Hoosiers in 2025, beginning Indiana’s perfect season.
Staff at Indiana commented on the bond the brothers shared with one another on the field. Coaches spoke to the competitive nature of each brother and their competitive dynamic that pushed each to be a better player. Early last season, Fernando and Alberto became the first brothers to both throw a touchdown in the same game since 2015 in their 56-9 victory over Kennesaw State.
Alberto played ten games over his two seasons with the Hoosiers before hitting the portal after the 2025-26 season. In his limited time on the field, Alberto completed 75% of his passes for 286 yards and five touchdowns. He threw only one interception across all games but added 190 rushing yards and a touchdown.
His departure from Indiana drew comment from Hoosiers’ head coach who publicly marked Alberto as his one that got away from the 2025-26 roster when asked about retention on the Andy and Ari podcast. Coach Cignetti said “We retained everybody we wanted to retain. We didn’t lose anybody we didn’t want to lose. Uh, well, Alberto (Mendoza), you know, we tried to retain him.”
Alberto’s path to starter was muddied after the Hoosiers grabbed former TCU quarterback, Josh Hoover, from the portal. His move to Georgia Tech offered the opportunity to secure a starting position in a Power Four lineup with the matriculation of Haynes King and the departure of Aaron Philo.
Over the Spring and Summer teammates and coaches alike have had good things to say about Alberto’s transition to a Jacket. Senior running back, Malachi Hosely was interviewed about Alberto at ACC media days earlier this month saying, “Alberto is going to make the right play. He is not going to make a bad play. He is a smart football player. He understands what to do, he’s knowledgeable, he’s a true leader. So with those things, if I were y’all, I would expect something electrifying.”
At media days, head coach Brent Key was coy when answering questions specifically about Mendoza. He finally relinquished “He’s smart, cerebral. Sees the whole field, can get us in and out of good plays, bad plays. He’s accurate, has a good release. Mom and dad are great people.”
Assistant head coach and former Heisman, Chris Weinke said, “There were a lot of unknowns when he got here, right? And so you never know. But I do know this, that he’s a high level thinker. He can process information, and that’s what we’re looking for, especially in this offense with a lot of the adjustments we’re gonna have to make at the line of scrimmage with the quarterback.”
Weinke praised Alberto’s work ethic saying “he, in essence, lives in this building; he loves football. I think that gives him an opportunity to have success in an offense like this.” Weinke went on to say that Alberto “[is] one of those guys who challenges the coaches, right? It makes us make sure that we’re crossing all out T’s and dotting all our I’s, but he’s got a chance to be a high-level player.”
It is safe to say that the players and staff around Alberto are confident in his decision-making and athleticism. Anything I say about the fit and probable outcome of Alberto taking the reins is based on nothing more than vibes. I am eager for September to roll around, so I can watch how Alberto fares playing in the shadows of both his big brother and Haynes King.
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