Heisman Trophy Finalists: As Fernando Mendoza Becomes The Favorite, Plenty Of Eyes On A Diego Pavia Shocker

We are days away from the ceremony in New York City, and the Heisman Trophy trust has announced the finalists for the coveted award given to the best player in college football. The question now is whether Diego Pavia did enough in the regular season to sway votes away from two quarterbacks who competed this past weekend in the Big Ten championship.

The finalists were announced on Monday night, with three quarterbacks earning an invitation to the event that will take place at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday night on ABC. 

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Two of the four finalists will participate in the college football playoff, which begins Dec. 19. 

Fernando Mendoza: Indiana

After leading the Hoosiers to a Big Ten championship this past weekend against Ohio State, Fernando Mendoza certainly had his Heisman moment in the historic win, which saw Indiana finish off the regular season with a perfect 13-0 record. 

Mendoza passed for 222 yards and one touchdown in the Hoosiers first win over Ohio State in the past thirty matchups. After transferring from Cal this past offseason, Fernando threw for 2,980 yards, with 33 touchdowns to just six interceptions. He leads all college football in touchdowns thrown. 

If Fernando can bring home the trophy, and the current betting odds are in his favor, Indiana will also have its first ever Heisman winner in program history. The Hoosiers will play in the Rose Bowl against the winner of Alabama versus Oklahoma. 

Diego Pavia: Vanderbilt

After leading Vanderbilt to its first 10-win season in program history, Pavia also became a lightning rod for the Commodores success, both on and off the field. 

The transfer quarterback from New Mexico passed for 3,192 yards and 27 touchdowns, while also rushing for an additional 9 touchdowns. He capped the regular season off with a dynamic performance against Tennessee, putting his stamp on becoming a finalist for the award. 

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We will see if not playing in a conference championship hurts his chances of bringing home the hardware, though there is plenty of arguments to be made that is was the most important player to his team this season. 

Jeremiyah Love: Notre Dame

The Fighting Irish running back set a school record with 21 all-purpose touchdowns during the 2025 season. 

Love finished the year with 1,372 rushing yards and 18 rushing touchdowns, helping Notre Dame stay in contention for the college football playoff, until this past weekend's final rankings saw Miami grab the final at-large spot. 

There is no denying that Love has been one of the best running backs in college football during his time in South Bend. Although he is only a junior, the Notre Dame back has the potential to be a fantastic player in the NFL, if he decides to go that route. 

Julian Sayin: Ohio State

The Buckeyes quarterback passed for 3,329 yards during the 2025 regular season, with 31 touchdowns and only six interceptions. 

In the loss to Indiana this past weekend in the Big Ten championship, Julian Saying threw for 264 yards, one touchdown and one interception. There were also times this season where he did not have star wide receivers Jeremiah Smith and Carnell Tate, and still put up fantastic numbers in just his second season of college football. 

Even though he will most likely not take home the award on Saturday night, Sayin has a promising career ahead, which could end with Ohio State winning a national championship. 

Both Mendoza and Sayin will have their chances to lead their squads through the college football playoff, while Diego Pavia will play one last game for Vanderbilt in the Reliaquest Bowl. For Jeremiyah Love, his time at Notre Dame has most likely come to an end, given the Fighting Irish decided against playing in a bowl game after not being selected for the playoff. 

We have seen plenty of Heisman Trophy ceremonies that bring a few surprises, and maybe we get that on Saturday night in New York City.