Cal's Fernando Mendoza, who has emerged as considered one of the country's up-and-coming quarterbacks, announced on social media He will leave school on Wednesday and enter the transfer portal.
Mendoza's surprise departure comes per week before Cal (6-6) faces No. 24 UNLV (10-3) within the LA Bowl and was met with disappointment and frustration by Justin Wilcox. The Bears' head coach said he tried unsuccessfully to persuade the redshirt sophomore to remain at Berkeley.
“Definitely disappointed” Wilcox said during a news conference Wednesday. “Yes, I will keep all conversations (with Mendoza) private. I think this is the best. … I don’t think anything in college football surprises me anymore.”
Mendoza had develop into a favourite of the Cal fan base along with his bubbly personality and gritty play even before he led the Bears to a dramatic big-game victory over Stanford on a 98-yard drive last month He shed tears of pride for his team through the post-game interview. On Wednesday, he explained his decision to enter the transfer portal on the social media platform X.
“Every person faces decisions that inevitably shape his life, and they rarely lack seriousness,” Mendoza wrote. “But in the interest of my footballing future, I made this decision.”
Mendoza was sparsely recruited out of highschool as Cal was the one power conference program to supply him a scholarship.
After amassing 3,004 yards passing and a 68.7 percent completion rate, the 6-foot-2, 220-pound Mendoza has loads of options for his next school. The website 247Sports said the Miami product ranks behind only Duke's Maalik Murphy among the many dozens of quarterbacks now featured within the portal. Mendoza is someone evaluators view as “a high-end talent with NFL upside.” based on 247Sports.
A preferred speculative landing spot for Mendoza is his hometown of Miami, where the Hurricanes will lose star quarterback and Heisman Trophy finalist Cam Ward to the NFL after this season.
Wilcox said no decision has been made yet on who will start at quarterback when Cal takes on No. 24 UNLV next Wednesday night at SoFi Stadium. Cal third-string quarterback CJ Harris and freshman EJ Caminong share reps in practice, he said.
Chandler Rogers, Mendoza's substitute, could be the heir apparent under normal circumstances. However, he was injured late in Cal's 38-6 regular-season loss to SMU and was forced out with a leg injury. His status for the bowl game is unknown.
Trying to sort out his quarterback situation a number of days before a bowl game wasn't what Wilcox expected this week.
“We did everything we could to keep (Mendoza),” Wilcox said. “And as I mentioned, these guys just have to make tough decisions. And I feel for the players of that time because there's a lot going on. It's very, very complicated.
“We don’t have enough time to talk about it, and I don’t necessarily think it would be productive to talk about it.”
Mendoza's impending departure comes someday after Wilcox and Cal announced the hiring of former Auburn and Boise State head coach Bryan Harsin because the Bears' latest offensive coordinator.
When Mendoza announced his decision in a lengthy post, he took the time to specific his gratitude to the university, his teammates, Wilcox and his staff, and Cal fans in every single place.
“I sincerely hope that I was able to have a positive impact as a person and not just as a football player during my time at Berkeley,” Mendoza wrote. “I am forever indebted to all of you for taking the risk and giving a young man the opportunity to pursue his dream.”
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