NEW YORK — Indiana football quarterback Fernando Mendoza joked at the start of the weekend that growing up he thought his best shot at winning the Heisman was in a video game.

The former two-star recruit once contemplated walking away from the sport thanks to the lack of interest from Power Four teams, but thanks to the advice of his mother Elsa, Fernando fought through the adversity to become the top player in the sport after winning the Heisman Trophy on Saturday night.

Mendoza is Indiana football’s first Heisman Trophy winner, beating out fellow finalists, Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin, Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia and Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love for the award.

“All those (struggles) were blessings,” Mendoza said this weekend. “They lit a fire underneath

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