The football team of Indiana University paid a visit Monday to The White House to celebrate their first national title in program history.
In the 2025 season, the Hoosiers rolled to an undefeated 16-0 campaign that concluded with a 27-21 victory against the Miami Hurricanes to win the College Football Playoff national championship game, which was attended by President Donald Trump. (RELATED: LSU’s Lane Kiffin Takes Jab At Ole Miss, Claims Racism Hurt Recruiting Process)
“I watched that game. I watched these guys,” said Trump. “They can play, they can play. And they were a little underestimated, but I just said not anymore… they were incredibly talented.”
Fernando Mendoza, the former quarterback for Indiana who won the Heisman Trophy, wasn’t able to be in Washington D.C. due to his participation in the rookie minicamp the Las Vegas Raiders are holding. Mendoza was taken with the No. 1 overall selection by the Raiders in the 2026 NFL Draft.
THE CHAMPS FROM THE HOOSIER STATE 🇺🇸🏈
President Trump hosts the 2025-26 College Football National Champions Indiana Hoosiers at the White House, celebrating the team’s first ever 16-0 season. pic.twitter.com/qWhaeWVGfI
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 11, 2026
“I’m on the bottom of the totem pole here. I’ve got to prove myself,” said Mendoza to the media May 2. “I can’t miss practice. I don’t have the calendar, but as a rookie, I don’t think that’s a good look. I want to try to best serve my teammates, and I don’t know if that’d be accomplishing that goal.”
Trump stated that Mendoza gave him a call to explain why he wouldn’t be attending.
“He’s at spring training, like his first day or something,” said Trump. “I said, ‘You better go there.’ … Otherwise, if he didn’t do that, believe me I wouldn’t have even talked about him, if he was not here for other reasons, like he didn’t like Trump or didn’t want to come, I wouldn’t have even mentioned him … I wouldn’t even mention the quarterback’s name. But he’s a great guy, and he is actually a great fan of what we’re doing for our country.”