All About Football Star Fernando Mendoza's Mom, Elsa Mendoza

“It's that unwavering optimism that she gives me that really helps me go through my day,” Fernando told PEOPLE of his mom in December 2025. “And she's so special to me. And to see her is such an inspiration to me. I'm so lucky to have someone like that in my life.”

Ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft, Fernando revealed that he wouldn't be attending in person and would instead watch with his family at their home in Miami.

“Pittsburgh is a great opportunity and it’s a great venue, and I’m really excited to see all the guys or most of the guys walk across the stage on Thursday night,” he told Rich Eisen on SportsCenter on April 20. “However, my mom really wanted to do it at home and so did my parents, it’s a lot easier for us, especially with the family situation.”

Here's everything to know about Fernando Mendoza's mom, Elsa Mendoza.

Elsa played college tennis and wanted Fernando to follow in her footsteps

Elsa Mendoza, mother of Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Fernando Mendoza, celebrates on the field on Jan. 19, 2026 in Miami Gardens.
Credit: Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Athleticism seems to run in the Mendoza family's blood, since Elsa was a collegiate tennis player at the University of Miami, per USA Today.

In December 2025, she wrote a heartfelt letter to her son in The Players' Tribune. Among other topics, Elsa shared how she initially wanted Fernando to follow in her footsteps as a tennis player.

"Sometimes you’ll try to credit me with teaching you how to throw, but that’s you being kind as usual," she wrote. "The truth is, it was more like an accident … from me being selfish. My dream was for you to play tennis like I did."

When she was raising her young boys, Elsa taught them drills she ran at Miami where they'd "step and throw" and repeat.

Elsa was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2008

Fernando and Alberto Mendoza with their family in December 2025.
Credit: Fernando Mendoza/Instagram

In 2008, Elsa was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS), an autoimmune disease that "causes breakdown of the protective covering of nerves" and results in "numbness, weakness, trouble walking, vision changes and other symptoms," according to the Mayo Clinic.

"I was diagnosed about 18 years ago, but of course you never knew that," she wrote for The Players' Tribune in December 2025. "You and Alberto were so young, and I was doing fine ... and mostly I didn’t want you to worry. It just felt like this impossible thing to place on you guys."

Elsa and Fernando Sr. kept her diagnosis underwraps for over a decade until they told their children in 2020 when her health started to go "downhill."

"No amount of years could have prepared me for how hard of a conversation it ended up being," she recalled. "Your mom has this degenerative disease ... and while we don’t know how it will progress, it’s going to start to affect us in a few ways."

Elsa thanked Fernando for making her health journey "so much easier" in the "sweetest, strongest, most Fernando way possible — by making me feel the exact opposite of embarrassed."

"You’ve made me feel seen," she added, while specifically crediting him for giving her "full debriefs" on all of the college visits and games she couldn't go to.

Elsa continued, "You’ve always kept that same spark in your eye. No matter what kind of state I’ve been in, or day I’ve been having — you’ve never once looked away. You’ve never once treated me like I’m embarrassing, or deficient, or anything other than someone you love and are standing by."

Over the years, Fernando and Alberto — who played college football at Indiana together — raised thousands of dollars through fundraisers for the National MS Society. In April 2026, the family launched the Mendoza Family Fund through the organization to remain "committed to making an impact in the fight against MS."

Fernando got emotional while thanking his mom for her "sacrifices" after winning the Heisman Trophy

Elsa and Fernando Mendoza Sr.
Credit: ESPN College Football/Youtube

In December 2025, Fernando received the prestigious Heisman Trophy and shared an emotional speech during which he dedicated the award to his mom — who was proudly sitting in the audience.

"Mami, this is your trophy as much as it is mine," he said, while tearing up. "You've always been my biggest fan. You're my light, you're my why, you're my biggest supporter. Your sacrifices, courage and love, those have been my first playbook and the playbook I'm going to carry by my side throughout my entire life."

Fernando continued, "You taught me that toughness doesn't need to be loud, it can be quiet and strong. It's choosing hope. It's believing in yourself when the world doesn't give you much reason to. Together, you and I are rewriting what people think is possible."

The athlete also took moments to thank his dad and brothers, along with coaches and other family members.

Elsa has attended several of Fernando's major football milestones

Indiana Hoosiers quarterback Fernando Mendoza embraces his family on the field on Jan. 19, 2026 in Miami Gardens.
Credit: Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Throughout her son's blossoming football career, Elsa has supported him at his major milestones. Elsa, Fernando Sr. and Max have been seen cheering on Fernando and Alberto at several Indiana games — including the 2026 Rose Bowl and the National Championship.

After the Hoosiers defeated the Miami Hurricanes in January 2026, Fernando and Elsa shared an emotional moment on the field when he leaned down to hug her and talk to her.

"It's so overwhelming. I don't even know what I'm feeling. It's like a numbness," Elsa told The Sporting Tribune afterward. "Every hug with him, I know that sounds so cliché, but this is just so special because I know how bad he wanted it and how hard he worked to get here."

She added that the embrace between her and her son "means the world."

Read the original article on People