Indiana's Fernando Mendoza is clear Heisman front-runner, but rival QB is giving him a run for his money

The 2025 Heisman Trophy will not be awarded until Dec. 13, but two Big Ten quarterbacks have emerged as the clear favorites.

Per FanDuel, as of Thursday (Nov. 20), Indiana's Fernando Mendoza (+100) and Ohio State's Julian Sayin (+190) have distanced themselves from the rest.

Fernando Mendoza is the clear front-runner for the Heisman Trophy

While Sayin is not far behind, Mendoza's late-game heroics have produced the moments that have become synonymous with winners of college football's most prestigious award.

The second-ranked Hoosiers blew a 20-7 lead against unranked Penn State in Week 11, but Mendoza stepped up and orchestrated a flawless game-winning drive. Although that was far from his best performance, Mendoza went 5-of-8 for 87 yards and placed the ball perfectly in the back of the end zone on the winning TD throw to wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr. to cap the 27-24 win.

One week later, Mendoza may have sealed the Heisman by leading Indiana to a 31-7 win over Wisconsin after going 22-of-24 for 299 yards and four TDs, completing his final 12 passes as the Hoosiers improved to 11-0 for the first time in program history.

Mendoza has completed at least 91.3% of his passes three times this season, posting the second-highest completion percentage overall (73%) and the most passing TDs (30) in the nation, all while accounting for only five interceptions. He has also tacked on an additional five TDs on the ground, proving he can use his legs as well when he needs to.

Indiana has two ranked wins over then-No. 9 Illinois, 63-10, and a third-ranked Oregon team, 30-20, and has a favorable regular-season finale against 2-9 Purdue on Nov. 28. Mendoza is in an excellent position to become the school's first Heisman Trophy winner.

Julian Sayin has a strong case as well

Although Texas A&M's Marcel Reed (+600), Vanderbilt's Diego Pavia (+1500) and Georgia's Gunner Stockton (+2500) have shown glimpses of Heisman potential this season, the sophomore from the top-ranked Buckeyes is the closest to Mendoza.

Sayin's completion percentage (80.1%) is even higher than Mendoza's and is the highest of any QB in the country. He has passed for 2,675 yards, 25 TDs, four interceptions and currently has the second-best QBR (90.5), only behind USC's Jayden Maiava (90.7) and ahead of Mendoza (88.7).

Ohio State has wins over a top-ranked Texas team in Week 1 and then-No. 17 Illinois with Sayin combining for three TDs and zero interceptions in those games. Perhaps Sayin's biggest strength is his ability to make deep ball throws and stay composed in the pocket with pressure coming toward him, like he showed in a Week 5 blowout win over Minnesota.