IUFB vs Old Dominion - Saturday, 08.30.25 @ 2:30 on FS1

[Napleshoosier]

After calming down some I gotta say I do trust in cig.  Why, because I googled him again!  On to next Saturday. Go Hoosiers.

[WayneFleekHoosier]

1 minute ago, AH1971 said:

He’ll put up numbers in this system no question. But the difference between 9-10 wins and 6-7 wins is going to be the three things I listened. It is one game thankfully.

We agree. That QB play today will cost us close games.   It was worse than many want to admit. However, hopefully it’s the worst we will see him.   Next 2 weeks will give us a bigger window then the Illinois game obviously.   Warning signs aplenty but time to straighten things out. 

[realTomCrean]

10-2

[AH1971]

1 minute ago, WayneFleekHoosier said:

We agree. That QB play today will cost us close games.   It was worse than many want to admit. However, hopefully it’s the worst we will see him.   Next 2 weeks will give us a bigger window then the Illinois game obviously.   Warning signs aplenty but time to straighten things out. 

People will compare Rourke’s first game to Mendoza’s first game. I don’t buy it. Mendoza’s ability to process just didn’t seem there. 

[RaceToTheTop]

1 minute ago, WayneFleekHoosier said:

We agree. That QB play today will cost us close games.   It was worse than many want to admit. 

I have yet to see anyone saying it was good.

His touch on short passes was bad.  He made some decisions to throw in double coverage that weren't good despite them not getting picked.

That said, he has a two year track record of being pretty good.  I'm not going to throw it away on one game.

[AH1971]

8 minutes ago, RaceToTheTop said:

I have yet to see anyone saying it was good.

His touch on short passes was bad.  He made some decisions to throw in double coverage that weren't good despite them not getting picked.

That said, he has a two year track record of being pretty good.  I'm not going to throw it away on one game.

Deep analytics show his decision making is poor and is a high turnover prone player. At least at Cal. You can tell all the physical tools are there.

[WayneFleekHoosier]

6 minutes ago, RaceToTheTop said:

I have yet to see anyone saying it was good.

His touch on short passes was bad.  He made some decisions to throw in double coverage that weren't good despite them not getting picked.

That said, he has a two year track record of being pretty good.  I'm not going to throw it away on one game.

Neither am I.  However before this game and with his preseason hype I thought he’d be a major strength.  After seeing him in the Cream and Crimson I’ve got major concerns I didn’t have before. That’s all. 
 

Maybe he settles in after watching film and can be an asset vs just a game manager. 
 

I do trust CIG to put us in the best spot to win games however that might mean making Mendoza a game manager and not slinging that thing around the field. Will cap our ceiling. 

Edited August 30, 2025 by WayneFleekHoosier

[Home Jersey]

1 minute ago, WayneFleekHoosier said:

Never am I.  However before this game and with his preseason hype I thought he’d be a major strength.  After seeing him in the Cream and Crimson I’ve got major concerns I didn’t have before. That’s all. 
 

Maybe he settles in after watching film and can be an asset vs just a game manager. 
 

I do trust CIG to put us in the best spot to win games however that might mean making Mendoza a game manager and not slinging that thing around the field. Will cap our ceiling. 

All true. That said, if Riley Leonard could game manage ND to the CFB title game, I think Mendoza could manage us into the CFP. Leonard was god awful most of the year as a passer and they became a very one dimensional offense. Trusting in Cig. 1-0. Like you said, time to straighten things out.

[RaceToTheTop]

6 minutes ago, AH1971 said:

Deep analytics show his decision making is poor and is a high turnover prone player. At least a Cal. You can tell all the physical tools are there.

'deep analytics'.

He threw 6 interceptions in 386 passes last year despite playing behind a putrid line.

[Lebowski]

7 minutes ago, RaceToTheTop said:

I have yet to see anyone saying it was good.

His touch on short passes was bad.  He made some decisions to throw in double coverage that weren't good despite them not getting picked.

That said, he has a two year track record of being pretty good.  I'm not going to throw it away on one game.

I thought he was good. He didn't throw a pick or lose the football via fumble. He hit multiple targets and threw to open receivers, that dropped his passes. He read the RPO correctly, for the most part. He rushed for positive yards when needed. And yes, he made typical 1st game mistakes. But most importantly, he managed the game to a win.1-0. On to the next game. 

[JerryYeagley23]

I’ll give Mendoza the benefit of the doubt. We ran the ball 57 times. It’s a small sample size 31 passes and one of the incompletions should have been a 54 yard TD. His touch playing at game speed will come. 

[AH1971]

12 minutes ago, RaceToTheTop said:

'deep analytics'.

He threw 6 interceptions in 386 passes last year despite playing behind a putrid line.

Like you said, “decisions to throw in double coverage that weren't good despite them not getting picked”.

That’s not a recipe for long term success.

 

[Home Jersey]

4 minutes ago, AH1971 said:

Like you said, “decisions to throw in double coverage that weren't good despite them not getting picked”.

That’s not a recipe for long term success.

 

... so you don't have "deep analytics" to support your claim? :)

[AH1971]

2 minutes ago, Home Jersey said:

... so you don't have "deep analytics" to support your claim? :)

Peep his pff grades from last year.His expected turnover %\throw was extremely high. PFF is about as analytical as it gets.

[RaceToTheTop]

4 minutes ago, AH1971 said:

Peep his pff grades from last year.His expected turnover %\throw was extremely high. PFF is about as analytical as it gets.

Actual interceptions thrown is as analytical as it gets.

[Home Jersey]

7 minutes ago, AH1971 said:

Peep his pff grades from last year.His expected turnover %\throw was extremely high. PFF is about as analytical as it gets.

PFF is about as analytical as it gets.

Based off subjective data though. PFF aka Pretty Flawed, Frankly. Lol

Maybe he had a very high "expected turnover %\throw" ... he still threw 6 picks last year. That's the objective data. Regardless I don't think we have to worry about Mendoza creating a ceiling of 6-7 wins for this team. At least not after one performance. Let's see how things look come B10 season.

[AH1971]

3 minutes ago, RaceToTheTop said:

Actual interceptions thrown is as analytical as it gets.

So if you throw into double and triple coverage and the ball doesn’t get intercepted it’s still a good throw? lol.

That’s the entire point. His decision making is subpar. That’s what analytics show. Good grief.

[Home Jersey]

Just now, AH1971 said:

So if you throw into double and triple coverage and the ball doesn’t get intercepted it’s still a good throw? lol.

That’s the entire point. His decision making is subpar. Good grief.

Because some guys grade a given throw as risky on a scale of -2 to +2 doesn't really tell you much in a meaningful way. People extrapolate PFF grades to all sorts of wacky arguments, like calling a QB that threw 6 INTs last year a poor decision maker and turnover prone. Lol 

[AH1971]

1 minute ago, Home Jersey said:

Because some guys grade a given throw as risky on a scale of -2 to +2 doesn't really tell you much in a meaningful way. People extrapolate PFF grades to all sorts of wacky arguments, like calling a QB that threw 6 INTs last year a poor decision maker and turnover prone. Lol 

The biggest question marks concerning Mendoza were his decision making and down field accuracy. I don’t think today was any indication those question marks were put to bed.

Enjoy your evening.

[str8baller]

38 minutes ago, Home Jersey said:

All true. That said, if Riley Leonard could game manage ND to the CFB title game, I think Mendoza could manage us into the CFP. Leonard was god awful most of the year as a passer and they became a very one dimensional offense. Trusting in Cig. 1-0. Like you said, time to straighten things out.

Riley Leonard was awful but could run. Also ND probably had a top ten personnel unit everywhere except Dline (still good when healthy) and receiver. IU won’t have that type of talent disparity. 
 

It’s also wild to me that the expectation is potential CFP. In the basketball thread I was trying to explain how Barnes got ousted at Texas because he failed to live up to the lofty expectations he set. Expectations change quick with success. IU football fans getting worked up because they might only win 7-8 games is as much proof of that as anyone will ever need.  I’m still high on this team but don’t really think a 1 loss squad is the expectation outside of Georgia, Bama, OSU, etc… IU will need Mendoza to play great and some luck (like most teams) to be vying for a CFP spot.