Jonathan Babcock

Child of the 80's, #HailState alum, Latter-day Saint, epic fantasy lover, The Elder Scrolls fan, business problem solver.

[Jonathan Babcock @jonbab1]

@AndersenNeilL Thank you for you and your family's influence on many formative spiritual experiences as my mission president during our service in the Bordeaux mission. Those experiences serving the Lord still bring me spiritual strength many years later.

[Jonathan Babcock @jonbab1]

Thanks for pulling this together! It reminds me how sometimes the hand of the Lord isn't as easy to see in the moment, but when you look back over the course of years - following the breadcrumbs, so to speak - the hand of the Lord directing His work becomes more evident. This is an interesting case in point.

[Jonathan Babcock @jonbab1]

@hoshinonozomimi Inspiring! Thank you for sharing your talent.

[Jonathan Babcock @jonbab1]

@VinnysCorner1 Mark Belanger

[Jonathan Babcock @jonbab1]

@td_nash Bo.

[Jonathan Babcock @jonbab1]

@AlTheBoss03 I'll give you two - one of the best batteries in baseball - Alan Trammell and Lou Whitaker of the Tigers!

[Jonathan Babcock @jonbab1]

@HawkEmDownChris Here’s a few: Hakeem Olajuwon, Patrick Ewing, Bill Laimbeer, Robert Parish

[Jonathan Babcock @jonbab1]

@Latterdaytruth 10.5 weeks. Had a visa delay to France.🇫🇷

[Jonathan Babcock @jonbab1]

@realKellyKnight France Bordeaux, 1991-93

[DK🇺🇸🦅🇺🇸 @1Nicdar]

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

[Morgan Scalley @RSNBUtes]

"If we could look into each other's hearts and understand the unique challenges each of us faces, I think we would treat each other much more gently, with more love, patience, tolerance, and care."

- Marvin J. Ashton

#EUEA

[Jonathan Babcock @jonbab1]

@trendyhoopstars Queen V! One of the best! Those teams had heart.

[Jonathan Babcock @jonbab1]

@BlastingThrough Here it is! https://t.co/cGff5tQyCO

[Jonathan Babcock @jonbab1]

@BlastingThrough Wasn't there a dance tune in the 80's.. something about in Viet Nam he was 19?

[Jonathan Babcock @jonbab1]

@kaitnielsen Sounds so easy, doesn't it? That is a good resolution, one I've been working on myself. Often for me it is more about second guessing myself than a willingness to act. I am also trying to adopt a mindset of, "if it is good - just do it!" Good luck!

[Jonathan Babcock @jonbab1]

@DerekjAndersen @Divotdotorg Love the interview, but it makes me feel super old. I remember you both as young'uns in the mission home in Bordeaux back 1992'ish. So nice to see how you've both made your marks on the world. Look forward to more content like this!

[Jerry Thornton @jerrythornton]

This is going to stick with me forever

[non aesthetic things @PicturesFoIder]

Man only want one thing..

[SMB Attorney @SMB_Attorney]

I’m posting this again today. I’ve literally never done this before.

You have to watch this.

Imagine thinking there’s anymore fulfilling in life than this.

There isn’t. This is the whole point.

[Jonathan Babcock @jonbab1]

@cuteasbuttons @RGibsonMSU I was there. Will never forget the Kevin Prentiss punt return that got us in the game late. Such an exciting game and great fight from our dogs despite the loss. I believe that was the year TN won the natty.