Fernando Mendoza has never met Julian Sayin. That will change Saturday.
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BLOOMINGTON — Indiana football quarterback Fernando Mendoza has seen enough crossover film of Julian Sayin this season to know he’s the real deal.
The two Heisman favorites will meet for the first time on Saturday night in the Big Ten title game when the No. 2 Hoosiers (12-0) face off against Ohio State (12-0).
While formal introductions will likely have to wait until after the game, Mendoza told reporters earlier this week that he’s excited about the opportunity to play on the same field as the talented redshirt freshman quarterback.
“It was a great experience to watch the Ohio State offense, the way that they are calling the plays, their receivers, their entire offense and Julian Sayin as well,” Mendoza said. “I really respect Julian. He’s so effective and fits that offense perfectly.”
Indiana coach Curt Cignetti offered high praise for Sayin this week as well.
“He plays with a lot of poise,” Cignetti said. “He doesn’t look like a guy that’s in his first year as a starter. He looks like he sees the field very well, throws the ball on rhythm. He can really rip it. He’s got a tight release, a lot of velocity on the ball, very accurate.”
They have been remarkably steady while leading their teams to identical undefeated records with stats that mirror each other. Their success is a big reason why Indiana and Ohio State had an average margin of victory of 30 points during the regular season.
Sayin leads the country in completion percentage (72%) and quarterback rating (184.4). Mendoza leads the FBS in total touchdowns (38) and passing touchdowns (32), and isn’t far behind in the other categories.
Mendoza was named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and Quarterback of the Year while Sayin this year’s Freshman of the Year Award.
“As a quarterback I like to say stats aren’t everything, but every quarterback prides himself on completion percentage, and his completion percentage is out of this world,” Mendoza said. “Lot of respect from my part to his for having such a high completion percentage and operate that offense as an x-factor player over there.”
The quarterback matchup is getting added attention with them being co-favorites for the Heisman trophy based on the latest betting lines. Mendoza and Sayin lead the field with +160 odds as of Friday.
Their moment in the spotlight will give Heisman voters an easy way to separate the two.
“I believe it’s going to be a great quarterback matchup,” Mendoza said.
Tale of the tape: Fernando Mendoza vs. Julian Sayin
| Stat | Fernando Mendoza | Julian Sayin |
| Passing yards | 2,758 | 3,065 |
| Completion % | 72% | 78.9% |
| Yards per attempt | 9.4 | 9.4 |
| Passing touchdowns | 32 | 30 |
| Interceptions | 5 | 5 |
| QB Rating | 183.7 | 184.8 |
| 25+ yard completions | 29 | 28 |
| Offensive rating (per PFF) | 88.7 | 93.4 |
Current Heisman Trophy betting odds
| Player (Team) | Current Odds | BETMGM Opening odds |
| Julian Sayin (Ohio State) | +165 | +2000 |
| Fernando Mendoza (Indiana) | +165 | +5500 |
| Diego Pavia (Vanderbilt) | +200 | +12500 |
| Jeremiyah Love (Notre Dame) | +5000 | +1300 |
| Jeremiah Smith (Ohio State) | +25000 | +3500 |
Michael Niziolek is the Indiana beat reporter for The Bloomington Herald-Times. You can follow him on X @michaelniziolek and read all his coverage by clicking here.
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Why Indiana football’s Fernando Mendoza ‘really respects’ his Heisman rival
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