The Indiana Hoosiers football team visited the White House on May 11 to celebrate their 2025 national championship, but one notable name was missing from the ceremony.

Star quarterback Fernando Mendoza was notably absent from the ceremony, a fact President Donald Trump acknowledged during his address.

“Now, the reason he’s not here, he was so nice, he called,” Trump said. “Because actually, JD (Vance), he’s a big fan of ours. 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 that he’s at spring training, right?”

Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti, who was present at the ceremony, responded with a laugh: “Correct.”

Trump also stated that the quarterback chose to remain with the Las Vegas Raiders for offseason workouts, which commenced on April 7.

“He’s at spring training, like his first day or something," Trump said. "I said, ‘You better go there.’ Otherwise, if I didn’t do that, believe me, I wouldn’t have even talked about him.”

Absence of Mendoza became a talking point as he was the face of Indiana’s championship run. After transferring from the University of California, Berkeley, the quarterback emerged as one of college football’s breakout stars before being drafted by the Raiders.

Fernando Mendoza on His Absence From the White House Visit

After being drafted No. 1 overall, Fernando Mendoza is not guaranteed the starting quarterback role entering the season. The Raiders, who recently signed veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins in free agency, have consistently emphasized healthy competition for their rookie passer.

That was one reason Mendoza chose to prioritize the training sessions over the White House visit.

"I believe May 11 is the first day of OTAs," Mendoza said during his introductory press conference. "If I'm not mistaken...it is on the first day of OTAs, like I said, I'm on the bottom of the totem pole here. I gotta prove myself. I can't miss practice…I'm a rookie. I don't think that's a good look."

Mendoza skipping a championship celebration may have let down some Indiana fans. But for him, it's about making a statement as he enters his rookie NFL season.

What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments.

Read more at Cleveland Browns Community.

Written by

Evince Das

Edited by

Shubhi Rathore