Indiana football got a huge performance from quarterback Fernando Mendoza on Saturday night. Indiana demolished Illinois football, 63-10. The Hoosiers defense held Illinois to just two rushing yards. Indiana quarterback Mendoza also threw five touchdown passes with no interceptions.

“Mendoza has now thrown for at least four touchdowns without a pick in three straight games. In the playoff era, only four other power conference QBs have done that. All four are starting on Sundays now (Caleb Williams, CJ Stroud, Joe Burrow and Tua Tagovailoa),” David Hale wrote for ESPN.

Indiana football posted 579 total yards of offense against Illinois. The Hoosiers are now 4-0 on the season, following their win over the Fighting Illini.

Indiana hopes to return to the College Football Playoff

The Hoosiers are really surging under head coach Curt Cignetti. Cignetti led the squad to the College Football Playoff in 2024, in just his first season at the school. Before Cignetti, Indiana football was seen as a cellar-dweller in the Big Ten.

Indiana looks poised to make another CFP run. The team's players think that this beatdown of Illinois will help change perceptions about the program.

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“They'll definitely look at it differently,” Indiana wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr. said, per ESPN. “One of the biggest things they said [last season was] we haven't beaten anybody in the Top 25. So now that we were able to do that today, and do that pretty dominantly, I think they'll start to respect us a little more.”

Mendoza looks like a quarterback who can lead this team to more wins. Following the Illinois game, the young play caller was humble about his performance.

“You're never going to be 100% perfect, and if you are, there's always going to be something, one play in the game,” Mendoza said. “But it's that drive to be perfect and to never be complacent. And that's the reason I came here, to become the best quarterback that I could become, and see my development accelerate, is what I want, and I want to keep on accelerating tenfold.”

Indiana next plays Iowa on Saturday.