Mark Cuban may have completely altered college football history in 2025.
The former Dallas Mavericks owner revealed he provided the NIL money that brought Fernando Mendoza to Indiana. Mendoza then became the Heisman Trophy winner and No. 1 NFL Draft pick, delivering the Hoosiers’ first national title.
Cuban didn’t specify the exact amount he contributed for Mendoza’s deal. But he took credit for financially backing the quarterback’s move to Bloomington.
How Cuban Made the Deal Happen
Cuban told Front Office Sports the opportunity came during Indiana’s 2024 College Football Playoff matchup against Notre Dame. He was sitting in a suite with Hoosiers athletic director Scott Dolson.
As Indiana was losing, Dolson mentioned a quarterback the program wanted to land.
“He’s like, ‘We’ve got this quarterback that we really, really like that we think would be great in [Curt Cignetti’s] system, we just need a little bit more,'” Cuban said. “I’m like, ‘How much is a little bit?’ And so he told me, and I’m like, ‘OK, you know, we’re on a roll, I’ll put up the money to get this quarterback.'”
Cuban already knew Fernando’s brother Alberto was on the Hoosiers roster. Prior to this deal, Cuban had never donated to Indiana athletics.
“I knew [Fernando’s brother Alberto], who was already on the team, was a Heat fan and he would sit behind the Miami bench, and when I would come to go to Mavs-Heat games, he was like, ‘Oh yeah, I’m going to IU,'” Cuban said. “So we met. And so I’m like, ‘OK, I’ll put up the money, and we can go get Fernando, and the rest is history.'”
When asked about the specific amount Indiana needed to land Mendoza, Cuban simply responded: “Enough.”
“I’ll put up the money and we can go get Fernando [Mendoza].”
Mark Cuban tells FOS that he provided the NIL money which allowed Indiana to sign the Heisman winning QB before the 2025 season. pic.twitter.com/BZAFOSt6ng
— Front Office Sports (@FOS) May 5, 2026
Mendoza’s NIL Valuation
According to On3, Mendoza had an NIL valuation of $2.6 million as of December 2025. That’s when he landed an endorsement deal with Adidas.
That valuation would’ve made him one of the five highest-paid college football players last season.
The investment clearly paid off for Indiana and Cuban, as Mendoza led the Hoosiers to their first national championship in program history.
