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By Tyler Erzberger
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Fernando Mendoza is currently one of the busiest athletes in the world, following his historic national title win for Indiana on Monday against his hometown Miami Hurricanes.
But that didn't stop him from taking extra time to talk, hang out, and sign some autographs for the Hoosier faithful on Wednesday.
It's been a whirlwind of a week that saw Mendoza declare for the NFL Draft, go on late-night television with Jimmy Fallon, and then hang out on national morning shows. In between all of it, though, he was at a Dick's Sporting Goods in Bloomington, meeting with the people who stood with him at the start of the year when the national media saw him as a side character to this year's college football narrative.
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Although the signing was on Wednesday, Mendoza went viral on Saturday after a clip of him talking to a fan at the event surfaced online.
In the clip, Mendoza spoke to an older fan in a wheelchair who wanted to thank him for everything he had done with the Hoosiers, and he got up to share a special moment with her just between the two of them.
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Mendoza has been a forward-facing ally of anyone dealing with illnesses or disabilities, with his mother, Elsa, suffering from multiple sclerosis. The Indiana signal-caller honored his mom when he won the Heisman as his greatest strength, and then once again praised her spirit and determination for the reason why he was capable of delivering the Hoosiers their first-ever college football national championship.
The signing was scheduled to last only 90 minutes, per WISH-TV News in Indiana. But with the massive crowd of fans and people wanting to have their moment with the QB, Mendoza stayed an extra 30 minutes after he was allowed to leave, citing that he wanted to get to everyone possible so they could go home with a signature.
The Las Vegas Raiders are projected to take Mendoza No. 1 overall in April's NFL Draft in Pittsburgh.
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