Fernando Mendoza leads Indiana to national title: How many Heisman winners and CFP champions became No. 1 pick in NFL Draft?

Fernando Mendoza completed the gauntlet during the 2025 NCAA season. Following the Indiana Hoosiers’ crowning in the College Football Playoff National Championship and Mendoza’s Heisman trophy, the star quarterback is now one step away from joining an elite club in college football. All that is left is for him to be selected with the first overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.

Only a handful of players have ever completed this trifecta. After his sensational year with the Hoosiers, Mendoza is now well on track to etch his name onto the selected group. Following Indiana’s victory over the Miami Hurricanes in the National Championship, we take a look at the five players who have won the Heisman, a natty, and went on to be drafted with the No. 1 pick.

The list consists of the following college football stars: Angelo Bertelli (Notre Dame), Leon Hart (Notre Dame), Cam Newton (Auburn), Jameis Winston (Florida State), and Joe Burrow (LSU). If Mendoza is indeed drafted with the first overall selection in the 2026 NFL Draft, the quarterback out of Miami, FL will be the latest talent to add his name onto the mix.

Who owns the No. 1 pick in the Draft?

After Mendoza and the Hoosiers finished the job with their dominant victory over the Hurricanes, the ball is now in the Las Vegas Raiders’ court. The organization in Sin City finished the 2025 NFL season with the league’s worst record (3–14) and was awarded the first overall pick in the upcoming draft because of it. There are no doubts that Mendoza will be declaring for the NFL Draft, as he has ran out of years of eligibility.

Fernando Mendoza of the Indiana Hoosiers.

Since then, the Raiders have been heavily linked to Mendoza. And for good reason. The selection makes too much sense, as Las Vegas has long been in need of a franchise quarterback after severely underwhelming stints with Jimmy Garoppolo, Gardner Minshew, Aidan O’Connell, Geno Smith, and others attempted as the No. 1 quarterback.

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Who is Fernando Mendoza’s backup QB on the Indiana Hoosiers depth chart for the 2026 CFP National Championship?

None worked out, and Mendoza presents a skill set the Raiders haven’t come across in a very long time. All signs indicate Mendoza will be selected first overall by the Raiders, but anything can happen. Once in a blue moon, the house sometimes loses—even in Las Vegas—and no one really knows for certain what the Raiders’ next move will be.