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President Donald Trump Made It Clear How He Feels About Fernando Mendoza After He Skipped Indiana’s White House Visit [VIDEO]

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This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.

Donald Trump and Fernando Mendoza.
Donald Trump and Fernando Mendoza (Photos via X and Imagn Images)

President Donald Trump gave a shout-out to an absent Fernando Mendoza during the Indiana Hoosiers’ visit to the White House on Monday.

Last week, Fernando Mendoza told reporters that he would miss the Hoosiers’ White House visit to practice with the Las Vegas Raiders. Mendoza’s reason had nothing to do with politics. The No. 1 pick of 2026 said he had to “prove” himself and didn’t want to miss one of his first practice.

Championship-winning teams in the NCAA and professional sports traditionally visit the White house. So it was obviously notable when Mendoza, the backbone of the Hoosiers’ 2025 national championship-winning season, missed the White House visit.

Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump admitted he was upset about Mendoza’s absence. The president said it was also “OK,’ since he was prioritizing practice, via the Indianapolis Star:

“He’s a big fan of ours, but you wouldn’t believe it because he didn’t show up. I’m not happy, but that’s OK, the reason he didn’t is because he’s at spring training…like his first day or something, I said you better go there.”

Mendoza threw for 3,535 yards, 41 touchdowns and only six interceptions in his only season at Indiana. As everyone expected, the Raiders used the No. 1 pick on the Heisman Trophy winner.

Fernando Mendoza Will Likely Back Up Kirk Cousins In 2026

Kirk Cousins (Credit: Candice Ward-Imagn Images)

After his release from the Atlanta Falcons, Kirk Cousins signed with the Raiders on a deal that will pay him $20 million guaranteed in 2026.

It’s hard to think that the Raiders would pay Cousins that much money if they weren’t planning to make him the Week 1 starter. As antsy as Raiders fans are to see Mendoza, Las Vegas will want to be patient with his development. It didn’t exactly work out well when they started JaMarcus Russell before he was ready, after all.

Of course, Cousins has to perform well in offseason practices. If Mendoza outplays him, rookie head coach Klint Kubiak will have a tough decision to make.

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