Fernando Mendoza was already being pursued by Georgie and Missouri when he announced his transfer to Indiana on Christmas Eve 2024. He’d spent two seasons at Cal, making a name for himself, and needed a new place to shine. Indiana won the sweepstakes—and it all started with a conversation with Mark Cuban at a blowout loss.

On the Portfolio Players podcast, the renowned businessman revealed that he was in a suite at Indiana’s playoff game the year before Mendoza arrived, sitting with Indiana’s Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Scott Dolson and President Pamela Whitten. They were watching the Hoosiers get blown out 27-17 by Notre Dame in December 2024. Dolson mentioned a quarterback they wanted—someone with a little more financial incentive. Cuban asked how much, and a deal was struck.

“I’m like, ‘How much is a little bit?’” Cuban recalled on the podcast. “And so he told me, and I’m like, ‘Okay, you know, we’re on a roll. I’ll put up the money to get this quarterback.”

Cuban already had a connection to Mendoza. Cuban is a minority owner of Miami’s rival franchise, the Dallas Mavericks. So when Cuban showed up at Miami’s games, he talked with his brother, Alberto.

“I knew Fernando’s brother, who already was on the team, because he was a Heat fan, and he would sit behind the Miami bench,” Cuban continued. “And when I would come to go to Mavs-Heat games, he was like, ‘Oh, yeah, I go to IU’ and [etc. etc.]. So we met, and so I’m like, ‘Okay, I’ll put up the money, and we can go get Fernando,’ and the rest is history.”

Cuban wouldn’t give a number, though. On the podcast, when he was pressed on how much Indiana needed, he sidestepped it by simply saying, “They needed enough.”

Mendoza had reportedly made just $1.6 million in his final year at California. But his 2025 season with Indiana brought him around $2.6 million. By the time Indiana reached the CFP national championship, Cuban confirmed his donations had increased during the season.

“Let’s just say they are happier this year than last,” Cuban said at the time.

And that investment returned a Heisman Trophy and a national title. Mendoza dominated the season by throwing for 3,535 yards and 41 touchdowns and finished with a nation-best 1982.9 passing efficiency across Indiana’s 16-0 unbeaten campaign. It was the first national championship in the program’s history.

As for Cuban, he hasn’t stopped at NIL. Spurred by the return of his Mendoza investment, he launched Harbinger Sports Partners in 2025, a $750 million fund targeting ownership stakes in NFL, NBA, and MLB franchises. The NIL play and the ownership play are the same logic for the Shark Tank phenomenon: get in early before the price goes up.

Cuban’s bet cashed in for massive returns in college. And now, the Las Vegas Raiders have spent the first overall pick on Mendoza in the 2026 NFL Draft. Whether this new investment from Las Vegas holds up is a different question—and it has nothing to do with NIL checks.

Fernando Mendoza has a lot to prove

Las Vegas went 3-14 in 2025 and finished dead last in points scored (14.2) and yards per game (245.2). They haven’t won a playoff game since 2002. Mendoza is the top pick with no NFL snaps, a college system that looked nothing like what new head coach Klint Kubiak runs, and a set of critics who have watched every game he’s ever played. An anonymous ACC coach was very straight in his assessment.

“He is a good decision-maker, but I don’t think he’s got the NFL traits,” the coach revealed to ESPN. “They’re all back-shoulder (throws). That’s not working in the NFL. His receivers made plays to make him look better than he is. In the NFL, those throws are getting picked off.”

The back-shoulder critique is unique. Mendoza took just 3% of his college snaps under center. Meanwhile, Coach Kubiak runs his own version of Kyle Shanahan’s West Coast offense—wide zone concepts, play-action heavy, and designed to operate under center. Those two things don’t meet in the middle without work. At rookie minicamp with the Raiders, Mendoza primarily lined up under center and was open about where he stood: “I still have a long way to go.”

“Instead of being back there in shotgun, we have to get back to make sure you best serve your offensive linemen, still be on time, still decipher the defense,” Mendoza said. “And with that, actually having an emphasis on those first two steps, in securing the snap and getting out of there, and [being] powerful with having quick feet.”

Mendoza also revealed that he’s been taking 25-50 snaps under center each night before practice.

Now, the popular take is that a 72% college completion rate and a Heisman mean the rest follows naturally. But veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins is likely the Week 1 starter because Kubiak’s offense requires a mechanical precision that Mendoza hasn’t had to execute at any level yet. Tom Brady, the Raiders’ minority owner and one voice in Mendoza’s ear, framed it plainly. He told Mendoza he was going to push him and “he’s not going to be all lovey-dovey” about it. Moreover, GM John Spytek had already laid it out best.

“I think any coach is excited to work with a big, athletic, talented thrower that is extremely smart and a very driven worker, and that’s been our experience with Fernando,” Spytek said. “That’s a great starting spot for any quarterback.”

For now, that’s all it is: a starting spot for Mendoza. Mark Cuban’s investment paid off in college for sure. The Raiders are now holding the receipt and waiting to see the return.