PITTSBURGH — Fernando Mendoza’s journey from overlooked two-star college recruit to the top of the NFL draft is complete after the Las Vegas Raiders took him with the first pick Thursday night.
Turning his new team into a contender is the next challenge for the Heisman Trophy winner who led Indiana to its first national championship.
The 22-year-old quarterback wasn’t in the Steel City for the first-round festivities, choosing instead to celebrate with family and friends at home in Miami. TV cameras showed Mendoza flashed a big smile after NFL commissioner Roger Goodell announced his name, put a Raiders cap on and began hugging his family while seated on the couch, saving the warmest embrace for his mother.
He’ll be heading to Las Vegas on Friday to begin an NFL career that may have seemed improbable when few colleges were interested in him coming out of high school.
“The last five months have been such a blessing by God, and I can’t thank him enough,” Mendoza said. “I’m just looking forward to get to work, prove it at the next level. College was fantastic. I’m so blessed to have that career, but now I step into a great game, the NFL. Look forward to proving and earning it every single day.”