Took charge of Real Sociedad when they were in relegation trouble, has them 4 points off 5th, looking for a Champions League spot, with only 2 defeats, and now Copa Del Rey Champion.
1st 🇺🇸 Manager to win a trophy in a Top Five league. Enorme, Rino 👏
Stick tap to a UMass legend who is calling it a career - 800+ NHL games, three Stanley Cups and the winningest American-born goaltender in NHL history 👏
Hudson athletic community remembers longtime announcer Don Quinn as more than just the voice of the Hawks. "It's like losing a piece of Hudson." https://t.co/Zi9HGZfvjL
@SHistorians@NFL_DovKleiman That’s his point though. Everyone at 18-20 would make that choice. He is saying giving young kids this choice is a disservice to their growth. They have to be taught to stay and fight.
130 schools said no.
He led the losingest program in college football history to a national championship anyway.
Fernando Mendoza was a 2-star recruit from Miami.
He tried to walk on at his hometown school. They passed.
So did FIU.
So did FAU.
So did everyone else.
At 17, he was sitting in his bedroom, crying over a silent recruiting inbox—after driving to 18 camps with his dad and sending highlights to more than 100 programs.
Not one FBS offer.
His only option? Yale. No scholarship. No NFL path.
Everyone told him to be “realistic.”
“Know your place.”
“Be grateful.”
He didn’t listen.
Because Mendoza understood something most people miss:
The worst outcome isn’t failing.
It’s never getting the chance to try.
Two weeks before signing day in 2022, his phone rang.
Cal needed a body. One offer. Out of 134 schools.
He took it.
He arrived as the third-string quarterback.
Spent a year on the scout team.
Lost his first four starts.
Got sacked 41 times behind a broken offensive line.
Still got up. Every time.
Then Cal brought in a transfer instead of building around him.
So Mendoza left the only school that had ever said yes.
He transferred to Indiana—the losingest program in college football history.
People laughed.
“Career suicide.”
“Graveyard program.”
“Nobody wins there.”
One coach told him something different:
“I’m going to make you the best Fernando Mendoza possible.”
That was enough.
Mendoza wasn’t just playing for football.
His mother has battled multiple sclerosis for 18 years.
Before every snap, he thought of her.
“My mother is my why.”
Indiana went 16–0.
Beat six Top-10 teams.
Won their first Big Ten title since 1945.
Mendoza threw 41 touchdowns.
Won the Heisman—first in school history.
First Cuban-American to ever do it.
Then came the title game.
Miami. Near his hometown.
Fourth-and-4. Season on the line.
Quarterback draw.
The kid 134 schools rejected spun through defenders and dove into the end zone.
Game over.
Indiana—national champions.
The losingest program became the best team in America.
All because a 17-year-old refused to believe “no” was the end.
Rankings don’t decide your ceiling.
Gatekeepers don’t write your ending.
Being overlooked isn’t a verdict—it’s a starting point.
Sometimes all you need is one shot…
and the courage to bet on yourself when nobody else will.
Don’t quit.
Credit: Barclay Mullins
Knowing when stages come to an end.
Knowing when to say goodbye when you feel that you will be remembered and respected forever.
Four months to give my all for this badge and for our goal.
Eternal respect and affection for Manchester United and its wonderful fans.
Forever Red Devil.
@AaronJFentress@TCEonSGPN JMU didn’t make the rules, the power 4 did to protect themselves (they wanted all 4 conference champions in). They didn’t anticipate two G5 teams would be ranked ahead of their champion. We should be laughing at the ACC and Power 4, not crapping on JMU who just played the games.
@KayceSmith Do you have this same hate when the 16 seeds qualify for ncaa tourney? I think it’s great. One of these days a team will win and that one win will make it worth it. The easier fix is all top 25 teams play championship weekend in a showcase. P.S. my bro is a coach for JMU lol.