Fernando Mendoza had himself a time at the Masters this past weekend in Augusta, Ga., before the Las Vegas Raiders are widely expected to select him first overall in next week\u2019s NFL draft.<\/p>\n
Mendoza, who led\u00a0Indiana\u00a0to the College Football Playoff championship last season and won the Heisman Trophy, was rubbing elbows with Maria Taylor of NBC Sports, Jim Nantz of CBS and the Golf Channel\u2019s Kira Dixon, while at Augusta National Golf Club, as seen in an Instagram post he shared on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Fernando Mendoza and NBC Sports broadcaster Maria Taylor pose for a photo together at the 2026 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Ga. Instagram\/Fernando Mendoza<\/p>\n
One snapshot showed Mendoza with his brother, Alberto, a quarterback for Georgia Tech, Jack Luckhurst, a placekicker for South Carolina, and Michael Luckhurst, a Cal men\u2019s soccer forward.<\/p>\n
Mendoza and Luckhurst, a former placekicker, were teammates on the Cal football team before the quarterback transferred to Indiana for the 2025 season, his final year of eligibility.<\/p>\n
(L-R) Alberto Mendoza, Fernando Mendoza, Jack Luckhurst, and Michael Luckhurst at the 2026 Masters Tournament in Augusta, Georgia. Instagram\/Fernando Mendoza<\/p>\n
He attended this year\u2019s Masters \u2014 where Irishman Rory McIlroy won his second consecutive green jacket \u2014 before the Raiders, co-owned by Tom Brady, are expected to select him on April 23. The Jets hold the second overall pick.<\/p>\n
The signal-caller had a visit with the Raiders in Las Vegas earlier this month, per ESPN.<\/a><\/p>\n Fernando Mendoza shakes hands with CBS Sports broadcaster Jim Nantz at the 2026 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Ga. Instagram\/Fernando Mendoza<\/p>\n Mendoza informed the league that he is not planning to attend the draft, according to ESPN\u2019s Adam Schefter<\/a>, who reported that he wants to share the draft experience with his family in Miami.<\/p>\n Mendoza has been making the rounds ahead of the draft. <\/p>\n Elsewhere on Monday, Mendoza was revealed as Esquire\u2019s \u201cMavericks of Sports\u201d <\/a>and spring issue cover star. <\/p>\n \u201cI always try to have a hunter mindset instead of the hunted mindset. So right now I try to compare myself to one out of thirty-two potential starting NFL quarterbacks \u2014 and I\u2019m not even drafted by a team and I don\u2019t have a starting position. But you want to stay hungry,\u201d Mendoza told the outlet <\/a>of preparing himself for his next phase of life.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t