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Fernando Mendoza responded Saturday to a question about whether he would visit President Donald Trump at the White House to celebrate the Indiana Hoosiers’ historic college football championship.
Mendoza said he “believed” the scheduled date of the visit, May 11, was the Las Vegas Raiders’ first day of organized team activities (OTAs). But he was wrong, since Raiders OTAs don’t start until May 18.
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Quarterback Fernando Mendoza, selected as the first overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft by the Las Vegas Raiders, attends a news conference at Raiders headquarters in Henderson, Nevada, April 24, 2026. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
“If it’s the first day of OTAs, like I said, I’m at the bottom of the totem pole here, I have to prove myself, I can’t miss practice,” Mendoza told reporters at a Raiders press conference Saturday. “As a rookie, I don’t think it’s a good idea. I want to try to serve my teammates better, and I don’t think this would accomplish that goal.”
The Raiders have nothing in their offseason schedule scheduled for May 11.
INDIANA’S FERNANDO MENDOZA WINS 2025 HEISMAN TROPHY
Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Fernando Mendoza looks on during warmups before the College Football Playoff national championship game against the Miami Hurricanes at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida on January 19, 2026. (Sam Navarro/Imagn Images)
Mendoza led Indiana to the college football championship and the first 16-0 season in the sport’s modern history. The team said it was heading to the White House on Friday to celebrate the accomplishment.
Mendoza became one of the biggest names in sports during his heroics for Indiana last season en route to the Heisman Trophy. He was the No. 1 pick in this year’s NFL Draft by the Las Vegas Raiders.
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President Donald Trump welcomes the NCAA collegiate national champions to the White House in this April 2026 photo. (Daniel Heuer/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The other college football champions who became first overall picks, Trevor Lawrence and Joe Burrow, each visited Trump at the White House during the president’s first term. Lawrence visited in 2019 and Burrow went in 2020.
Now all eyes are on Mendoza, who has etched his name in college football history and the hearts of many football fans, to see if he will make the trip once he realizes OTAs are not on the same day as the visit.
