calumnus said:

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freshfunk said:

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If I were to think about recent starting QB's off the top of my head, here's how I'd rank them.

1. Goff
2. Webb
3. Garbers
4. Mendoza
5. Plummer
6. Bowers
7. Sam Jackson

(I'm a little less confident the further we go back since memories can be fuzzy. Also, Nando still has a couple of years to get better.)

At this point, I'd say the most likely outcome is that Nando has enough to be the practice team QB on an NFL roster. I think he's very good in some areas (within 15 yards, center of the field) but not as good in other areas (beyond 15, sideline throws) and doesn't seem as good/elite as QB's we've had in the past (pocket presence, escaping the pocket, very tight windows). He's shown flashes where he can get into the zone and be accurate while under pressure (Auburn 1st half, 98 yards with my boys) but at other times he has his slumps and can't find solutions when there's pressure.

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Nice post. That is exactly the way I see it. Though I think he throws well much deeper than 15 as long as it is between the hashes. I do think Fernando's growth has been extraordinary and would expect him to continue to improve, especially as a passer. We saw the same with Rodgers and Elway, who initially threw everything hard.

The one limiting area I see is a certain lack of athleticism, nimbleness in the pocket. He is tall and lanky and a little awkward. I don't think he will be great under center. I think his best fit is standing tall in shotgun throwing lasers upfield in an Air Raid offense.

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The offense suited him. It took a 2 Star QB with hardly any scholarship offers and turned him into a 4 Star Transfer Prospect. Wilcox and Bloesch did him well (unlike Ott).

All the more reason for him to leave and maximize his net worth for a couple of years

okaydo said:

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I don't hate him, but the slobbering over him by the Calgorithm these past few months has gone overboard. (And part of it seems to be based on his looks. It reminds me of the slobbering over Luigi.)

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Agreed calling him Nando like he is your best friend, he isn't. Hes a hired gun slinger.

Disagree. Nando was bad in the run pass option. So many times the handoff would have gotten 20 yards and he kept it. He did some good things, but he holds on to the ball way too long (at least half the sacks were on him), doesn't read the blitz, and was just ok on the read option. I am optimistic that we can at least find something comparable, hopefully with better running ability.

caltripper said:

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I am optimistic that we can at least find something comparable, hopefully with better running ability.

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Take a look at who's in the portal. Mendoza is a good QB but he isn't the second highest rated transfer QB because he's the second coming of Tom Brady....

oski003 said:

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calumnus said:

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.

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The offense suited him. It took a 2 Star QB with hardly any scholarship offers and turned him into a 4 Star Transfer Prospect. Wilcox and Bloesch did him well (unlike Ott).

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The offense that nearly led the league in sacks allowed? That one? Just a thought, but maybe Fernando's hard work both during the season and off-season had something to do with his progress as a QB. Can you identify anything specific Wilcox or Bloesch did to help him improve, other than letting him play once every other QB they brought in failed?

Too many rumors swirling to know whether Fernando is a good guy or just a selfish *****, but there is plenty of evidence that neither Wilcox nor Bloesch is a good coach. Labeling either as some QB-guru who can turn a turd into a 4-star prospect is kinda funny.

caltripper said:

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Disagree. Nando was bad in the run pass option. So many times the handoff would have gotten 20 yards and he kept it. He did some good things, but he holds on to the ball way too long (at least half the sacks were on him), doesn't read the blitz, and was just ok on the read option. I am optimistic that we can at least find something comparable, hopefully with better running ability.

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That is my take. Plus 6 and 5 (not counting flu-game) . Love his heart and great story but he isn't a great modern college qb who need to be able to run

DaveT said:

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oski003 said:

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calumnus said:

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.

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The offense suited him. It took a 2 Star QB with hardly any scholarship offers and turned him into a 4 Star Transfer Prospect. Wilcox and Bloesch did him well (unlike Ott).

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The offense that nearly led the league in sacks allowed? That one? Just a thought, but maybe Fernando's hard work both during the season and off-season had something to do with his progress as a QB. Can you identify anything specific Wilcox or Bloesch did to help him improve, other than letting him play once every other QB they brought in failed?

Too many rumors swirling to know whether Fernando is a good guy or just a selfish *****, but there is plenty of evidence that neither Wilcox nor Bloesch is a good coach. Labeling either as some QB-guru who can turn a turd into a 4-star prospect is kinda funny.

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They certainly helped turn a 2* unwanted prospect into a 4* apparently getting 2 million to play college football. Making him earn his starting spot is not a negative.

oskidunker said:

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Pittstop said:

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BearlyCareAnymore said:

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MathTeacherMike said:

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I have been baffled with the adoration of Nando among Cal fans. After his emotional interview following The Big Game, the consensus was that he could walk on water. More than anything, Cal fans lovefest with him reveals our lowered standards and expectations. But looking at it objectively - he's a very mediocre college quarterback. I've already gotten into it here in other posts where people think that he is a sure-fire NFL quarterback - I argue that he will never take a snap in an NFL regular season game. Time will tell. So, while this might sound like sour grapes today - I found this article both interesting and timely.

Top 50 College Quarterbacks after the completion of the 2024 season.

Article TL/DR: Fernando Mendoza is not listed in the top 50 of college quarterback. His name is listed (alphabetically) grouped with the "next 50."

Now I'm not saying that he will be easily replaced - Cal football appears to be on life-support at this point. But with Wilcox still here, I don't think Nando's leaving is that big of a deal; we are destined to fail with or without him.

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Sorry, Math, but no.

He is 53 in QBR. But here is the thing. He is getting killed on that stat by sacks which isn't his fault. He is 129 on the list on ESPN which is dead last. He is getting killed in lack of TD's, which isn't mostly his fault. He is 34 in Pass Efficiency. (#8 among Frosh/Soph) He is 13 in Pass yards. (#4 among frosh soph) He is 10 in Completion Percentage. (Best among Frosh/Soph)

The guy is a good college QB. Personally, I don't see him as NFL material, but I could be wrong. He has more time to develop and he is already one of the best in his class. The article you linked is exactly why he needed to go. He would easily be in that list playing in another offense. He is getting killed statistically by the lack of an O-line and by the lack of a coherent offense taking advantage of his production to score points.

He is not easily replaced and yes it is a big deal. Could easily cost 3 or 4 wins. Personally if 7-5 is our top, I realize that doesn't make us a household name, but I'd rather be 7-5 than 3-9.

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You are absolutely correct about Nando. Nevertheless, a competent, professional, Uber prepared OC, who actually knows how to coach QBs and how to deftly and expertly coordinate offenses, and how to call plays, and how to produce stout OLs who consistently execute - all of which are hallmarks of past Harsin-coached offenses - could very likely coach up a QB who 'we' might consider to be somewhat lesser than Nando to perform at a higher level, and produce better results than Nando was able to achieve under the sh_t show of an OL - and 'offense', in general - that Cal has had during his time here as Cal's QB.

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When pigs fly

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An 'ignorer' of empirical evidence. Per a quote from the movie, Cool Hand Luke: "What we have here is a failure to communicate."

There's been a lot of Cal Golden Bears football played since 1892. The "recent" QB filters out sooooo many great QBs: Kapp, Rodgers, Bartkowski, Ferragamo, Morton, Barnes, Barr, Taylor, Boller,... I don't think Mendoza makes the top 20 in the list.

Mendoza had a chance to help cement his name in Cal Bears lore, but I think his name will fade quickly in Berkeley. By the 2025 season, the "98 yards with my boys" speech won't get you a nickel for a sandwich.

caltripper said:

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Disagree. Nando was bad in the run pass option. So many times the handoff would have gotten 20 yards and he kept it. He did some good things, but he holds on to the ball way too long (at least half the sacks were on him), doesn't read the blitz, and was just ok on the read option. I am optimistic that we can at least find something comparable, hopefully with better running ability.

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He did need to improve his pocket presence and not hold the ball too long, but I'm not sure that Garbers was a whole lot better at this.

I'm also not sure about our RPO game. A lot of the time it looks like we are really just handing it off while maintaining some token illusion that the QB might keep it. Is this on the QB or the coaching staff? Hard to say. It certainly seems more in Wilcox's nature to not let his players freelance too much.

It will be interesting to see how he does without Mike P. in his head during the season combined with the offseason prep they did. There was a direct correlation to his 19 of 21 "pefect decisionmaking" stretch in the Auburn game and some mental work they did together.

oski003 said:

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They certainly helped turn a 2* unwanted prospect into a 4* apparently getting 2 million to play college football. Making him earn his starting spot is not a negative.

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Is he really getting 2 million?

calBlitz said:

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oski003 said:

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They certainly helped turn a 2* unwanted prospect into a 4* apparently getting 2 million to play college football. Making him earn his starting spot is not a negative.

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Is he really getting 2 million?

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Close to it.

Alkiadt said:

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calBlitz said:

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oski003 said:

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They certainly helped turn a 2* unwanted prospect into a 4* apparently getting 2 million to play college football. Making him earn his starting spot is not a negative.

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Is he really getting 2 million?

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Close to it.

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Is there a link?

HearstMining said:

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calumnus said:

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freshfunk said:

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If I were to think about recent starting QB's off the top of my head, here's how I'd rank them.

1. Goff
2. Webb
3. Garbers
4. Mendoza
5. Plummer
6. Bowers
7. Sam Jackson

(I'm a little less confident the further we go back since memories can be fuzzy. Also, Nando still has a couple of years to get better.)

At this point, I'd say the most likely outcome is that Nando has enough to be the practice team QB on an NFL roster. I think he's very good in some areas (within 15 yards, center of the field) but not as good in other areas (beyond 15, sideline throws) and doesn't seem as good/elite as QB's we've had in the past (pocket presence, escaping the pocket, very tight windows). He's shown flashes where he can get into the zone and be accurate while under pressure (Auburn 1st half, 98 yards with my boys) but at other times he has his slumps and can't find solutions when there's pressure.

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Nice post. That is exactly the way I see it. Though I think he throws well much deeper than 15 as long as it is between the hashes. I do think Fernando's growth has been extraordinary and would expect him to continue to improve, especially as a passer. We saw the same with Rodgers and Elway, who initially threw everything hard.

The one limiting area I see is a certain lack of athleticism, nimbleness in the pocket. He is tall and lanky and a little awkward. I don't think he will be great under center. I think his best fit is standing tall in shotgun throwing lasers upfield in an Air Raid offense.

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Lousy pass protection made it tough to gauge Fernando's ability to throw the long ball, since he rarely had time for receivers to get downfield, but he improved so much from 2023 to 2024, that the trajectory (unintentional pun, here) was encouraging. The fact that Cal whiffed on OL improvement through the portal the last two seasons had to have some impact on his portal decision.

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When was the last time we had a good OL that provided awesome pass pro? Our QB's have had mediocre pass pro for most of years in recent Cal history. Obviously some of these offenses were different, but the people I ranked above Mendoza had better anticipation and were more accurate with the long ball. Not just that, they knew when to take those shots down field.

DaveT said:

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oski003 said:

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calumnus said:

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.

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The offense suited him. It took a 2 Star QB with hardly any scholarship offers and turned him into a 4 Star Transfer Prospect. Wilcox and Bloesch did him well (unlike Ott).

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The offense that nearly led the league in sacks allowed? That one? Just a thought, but maybe Fernando's hard work both during the season and off-season had something to do with his progress as a QB. Can you identify anything specific Wilcox or Bloesch did to help him improve, other than letting him play once every other QB they brought in failed?

Too many rumors swirling to know whether Fernando is a good guy or just a selfish *****, but there is plenty of evidence that neither Wilcox nor Bloesch is a good coach. Labeling either as some QB-guru who can turn a turd into a 4-star prospect is kinda funny.

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No one, including you, "can identify anything specific [or otherwise] Wilcox or Bloesch did to help [Fernando] improve", because no one here was in the QB meetings, or the film room with the coaches and QBs, or on the practice field (closed sessions) during QB drills. So your question is spurious (at best) to begin with.

oskidunker said:

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okaydo said:

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I don't hate him, but the slobbering over him by the Calgorithm these past few months has gone overboard. (And part of it seems to be based on his looks. It reminds me of the slobbering over Luigi.)

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Agreed calling him Nando like he is your best friend, he isn't. Hes a hired gun slinger.

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I call him "Nando" because it is easier (less letters) to type than "FERnando", and people here will still know who i am referring to. Pretty practical if you ask me.

HearstMining said:

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calumnus said:

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freshfunk said:

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If I were to think about recent starting QB's off the top of my head, here's how I'd rank them.

1. Goff
2. Webb
3. Garbers
4. Mendoza
5. Plummer
6. Bowers
7. Sam Jackson

(I'm a little less confident the further we go back since memories can be fuzzy. Also, Nando still has a couple of years to get better.)

At this point, I'd say the most likely outcome is that Nando has enough to be the practice team QB on an NFL roster. I think he's very good in some areas (within 15 yards, center of the field) but not as good in other areas (beyond 15, sideline throws) and doesn't seem as good/elite as QB's we've had in the past (pocket presence, escaping the pocket, very tight windows). He's shown flashes where he can get into the zone and be accurate while under pressure (Auburn 1st half, 98 yards with my boys) but at other times he has his slumps and can't find solutions when there's pressure.

---

Nice post. That is exactly the way I see it. Though I think he throws well much deeper than 15 as long as it is between the hashes. I do think Fernando's growth has been extraordinary and would expect him to continue to improve, especially as a passer. We saw the same with Rodgers and Elway, who initially threw everything hard.

The one limiting area I see is a certain lack of athleticism, nimbleness in the pocket. He is tall and lanky and a little awkward. I don't think he will be great under center. I think his best fit is standing tall in shotgun throwing lasers upfield in an Air Raid offense.

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Lousy pass protection made it tough to gauge Fernando's ability to throw the long ball, since he rarely had time for receivers to get downfield, but he improved so much from 2023 to 2024, that the trajectory (unintentional pun, here) was encouraging. The fact that Cal whiffed on OL improvement through the portal the last two seasons had to have some impact on his portal decision.

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What I mean is when he can step into a throw he can throw 30, 40 even 50 yard lasers easy. It is far and away his best attribute as a QB, his ability to throw medium to long over the middle of the field. We needed more routes deep over the middle off play action on first. Too often our long pass attempts were sideline routes that require more arch, touch and timing, but even there he was improving with some big assists from Hunter. He even added a back shoulder fade at the goal line and improved on his short swing passes (not good last year) by altering his throwing motion.

Really, it was clear very early that Mendoza was greatly improved, our first and second down runs were getting stuffed, and that we should be a pass first, score fast offense. And we actually started doing that building a big lead against Miami in front of a College Game Day crowd and national audience, only to abandon it in the 4th quarter. Then again in 3 more losses. Squandering a potential double digit win season.

If we kept having Fernando throw on the 4th quarter and we won those games and have better energy against Syracuse, winning that too, Fernando likely plays against SMU flu or no flu, we may or may not be in SMU's position, but it is far more likely Mendoza returns to try again in 2025.

I know this will be sacrilege for some on this board, but I think Ott was his own worst enemy this year. While our OL could have been better, his patient running style was as much or more detrimental to his success as was our OL's lack of effectiveness. The times Ott was sent out on the edge he still often was tackled for a loss or short gain. He showed nearly nothing in the pass game. I never saw him adapt his patient running style when the situation called for him to be way more decisive and hit what hole with everything he could. I want to cut him some slack that maybe he wasn't fully healthy, but my assumption is if he is playing he is well enough to play at a high level. The Jet performed far better behind the same line. I would support the Jet as our starter next season if Ott doesn't come back. I'd almost rather see more invested in the OL so that mediocre QBs and RBs look like Heismen candidates.

CALiforniALUM said:

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I know this will be sacrilege for some on this board, but I think Ott was his own worst enemy this year. While our OL could have been better, his patient running style was as much or more detrimental to his success as was our OL's lack of effectiveness. The times Ott was sent out on the edge he still often was tackled for a loss or short gain. He showed nearly nothing in the pass game. I never saw him adapt his patient running style when the situation called for him to be way more decisive and hit what hole with everything he could. I want to cut him some slack that maybe he wasn't fully healthy, but my assumption is if he is playing he is well enough to play at a high level. The Jet performed far better behind the same line. I would support the Jet as our starter next season if Ott doesn't come back. I'd almost rather see more invested in the OL so that mediocre QBs and RBs look like Heismen candidates.

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A lot of friends have been telling me this all year.

What does our next billboard campaign say?

CALiforniALUM said:

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What does our next billboard campaign say?

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Cancelled.

Bobodeluxe said:

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CALiforniALUM said:

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What does our next billboard campaign say?

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Cancelled.

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We are looking for a quarterback who can run but cant pass.

Pittstop said:

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DaveT said:

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oski003 said:

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calumnus said:

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.

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The offense suited him. It took a 2 Star QB with hardly any scholarship offers and turned him into a 4 Star Transfer Prospect. Wilcox and Bloesch did him well (unlike Ott).

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The offense that nearly led the league in sacks allowed? That one? Just a thought, but maybe Fernando's hard work both during the season and off-season had something to do with his progress as a QB. Can you identify anything specific Wilcox or Bloesch did to help him improve, other than letting him play once every other QB they brought in failed?

Too many rumors swirling to know whether Fernando is a good guy or just a selfish *****, but there is plenty of evidence that neither Wilcox nor Bloesch is a good coach. Labeling either as some QB-guru who can turn a turd into a 4-star prospect is kinda funny.

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No one, including you, "can identify anything specific [or otherwise] Wilcox or Bloesch did to help [Fernando] improve", because no one here was in the QB meetings, or the film room with the coaches and QBs, or on the practice field (closed sessions) during QB drills. So your question is spurious (at best) to begin with.

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I'm not the one claiming Wilcox and Bloesch are responsible for Fernando's success. Might want to steer clear of that if, like you said, you can't possibly know what they did.

I'm over him already. I was an early optimist and ongoing fan. But leaving a team early except for going pro or medical retirement, no matter what the reason, has that 'you're dead to me" effect. I thank him for the BG win this year but the rest, meh.

95bears said:

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It will be interesting to see how he does without Mike P. in his head during the season combined with the offseason prep they did. There was a direct correlation to his 19 of 21 "pefect decisionmaking" stretch in the Auburn game and some mental work they did together.

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Plus didn't he go to Manning Camp over the summer?
Stirlin Gilbert may get some credit and Fernando did a lot on his own.

calumnus said:

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95bears said:

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It will be interesting to see how he does without Mike P. in his head during the season combined with the offseason prep they did. There was a direct correlation to his 19 of 21 "perfect decisionmaking" stretch in the Auburn game and some mental work they did together.

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Plus didn't he go to Manning Camp over the summer?
Stirlin Gilbert may get some credit and Fernando did a lot on his own.

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yes he went to Manning camp. I posted elsewhere that it was a huge confidence booster for him to ball out with the blue chip / big name guys.