On Monday, Indiana did two things: won the National Championship and broke the college football in the process.
Their stunning 27-21 thriller against Miami delivered everything it promised and more to the fans, as QB Fernando Mendoza's 12-yard "airborne" touchdown all but set the stage for the Hoosiers to lift the National Championship trophy.
That single moment was everything Mendoza worked for the whole season while building a fairytale rags-to-riches plot for Curt Cignetti this season.
Mendoza's already baffling draft stock shot up even further the moment he hoisted the gold at the Hard Rock.
The California transfer secured his spot as the consensus 1.01 with his National Championship and Heisman Trophy.
Mendoza going to the Raiders as the No. 1 overall pick will set the market, triggering the domino effect for the rest of the QBs to follow.
Mendoza, Trinidad Chambliss and the 2026 NFL Draft
This is where Ole Miss star QB Trinidad Chambliss comes in. Chambliss has been by far one of the most intense storylines of the season.
Although some head coaching drama sidelined his Division II to College Football Playoff run story, he will command the attention of every NFL team in lookout for their next QB in the 2026 NFL Draft.
The NCAA denying Chambliss' additional year of eligibility makes him ending up in the NFL a very real possibility.
He is waiting around in the Mississippi court to see it through the end with a lawsuit, but everyone is somewhere getting mentally ready to see Chambliss among the first-round draft picks.
Chambliss is largely perceived as QB2 or QB3 as of now, with Oregon's Dante Moore announcing his return to college football for another season.
Plus, Mendoza’s 16-0 run just proved the 'Transfer-Ready' theory, transforming Chambliss’s legal limbo into a high-speed lane to the first round.
GMs will be totally obsessed with the fact that he won a D-II National Title at Ferris State and then immediately took Ole Miss to a CFP Semifinal. He doesn't just play; he wins as an elite dual-threat.
Any team who misses out on Mendoza will be hot on Chambliss's chase.
A top-10 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft carries a total contract value of roughly $30 million to $55 million. And that's precisely why Mendoza winning the natty could translate to Chambliss having a blockbuster $30 million exit strategy.