{"id":444969,"date":"2025-12-13T18:49:13","date_gmt":"2025-12-13T18:49:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/444969\/"},"modified":"2025-12-13T18:49:13","modified_gmt":"2025-12-13T18:49:13","slug":"how-do-this-seasons-heisman-trophy-finalists-project-as-nfl-draft-prospects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/444969\/","title":{"rendered":"How do this season\u2019s Heisman Trophy finalists project as NFL Draft prospects?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Athletic has live coverage of the Army-Navy game<\/a>\u00a0 and the 2025 Heisman Trophy ceremony.<\/a><\/p>\n

Of the last 21 Heisman Trophy winners, 19 went on to become first-round NFL Draft<\/a> picks.<\/p>\n

Of those 19 first-rounders, 16 were top 10 picks, including the last nine straight.<\/p>\n

Will that streak be extended this year?<\/p>\n

All four finalists for the 2025 Heisman Trophy \u2014 Fernando Mendoza, Jeremiyah Love, Diego Pavia and Julian Sayin \u2014 have some NFL future ahead of them. However, each of their draft projections looks a little different.<\/p>\n

Fernando Mendoza, QB, Indiana<\/p>\n

No matter what else happens, Mendoza already has etched his name in college football history, having led Indiana to its greatest season in school history \u2014 and his r\u00e9sum\u00e9 isn\u2019t finished. The current favorite to be QB1 in the 2026 NFL Draft, the Cal transfer was already viewed as a potential first-rounder in the summer and has only improved his stock in the eyes of NFL teams.<\/p>\n

Mendoza doesn\u2019t have an elite arm or athleticism, but he is good enough in both categories. More importantly, he has above-average accuracy and processing (pre- and post-snap), which is why he has been a perfect fit in the Hoosiers\u2019 RPO-heavy scheme.<\/p>\n

Box-score scouts won\u2019t love Mendoza\u2019s 229.2 passing yards per game in 2025, but that\u2019s more a product of Indiana\u2019s balanced offense than anything. Mendoza is full of \u201cNFL throws,\u201d too, especially in clutch moments.<\/p>\n

Against Ohio State\u2019s top-ranked defense, he had a handful of dagger throws that made the difference in that game \u2014 a fourth-and-2 conversion while under duress in the second quarter; a deep post to Charlie Becker for a 51-yard gain (seen in the clip below), which set up a slot-fade touchdown pass to Elijah Sarratt four plays later; a 33-yard go-ball to Becker on a third down, which essentially sealed Indiana\u2019s victory.<\/p>\n

Had any of those four passes been incomplete, the game\u2019s outcome probably would\u2019ve been different. However, the moment has never been too much for Mendoza.<\/p>\n

NFL Draft projection:<\/strong> Assuming he declares, Mendoza has a good chance to be the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. His skill set is reminiscent of Jared Goff, who also didn\u2019t have elite physical traits, but his mind and passing talent made him the top pick in 2016. We could see a similar situation play out with Mendoza in 2026.<\/p>\n

Jeremiyah Love, RB, Notre Dame<\/p>\n

Love entered the season as college football\u2019s top running back, and he didn\u2019t disappoint. In fact, he looked even better in 2025 than he did last year. The St. Louis native showed improved run patience as a junior and did a better job of staying north-south, which led to an increase in first downs without sacrificing his big-play talent.<\/p>\n

He matched his yards per carry average from last season (6.9) and led the FBS with eight plays of 20-plus yards (four carries, four catches). Over the past two seasons, Love combined for 40 touchdowns from scrimmage \u2014 eight more than No. 2 on the list.<\/p>\n

Saquon Barkley was picked apart pre-draft for having \u201cquestionable vision\u201d and doing \u201ctoo much dancing.\u201d However, at a certain point, you just bet on the unique athlete who can do freaky things with the ball in his hands. He and Barkley are different types of running backs, but I think the process will be similar for Love. His ability to smash the accelerator and stay on his feet through contact makes him a nightmare to tackle, mainly when he attacks the second level of a defense.<\/p>\n

The NFL wants explosive playmakers who impact the scoreboard. Love does that better than any other draft-eligible prospect in the class.<\/p>\n

NFL Draft projection:<\/strong> Love is a top-five talent in the 2026 NFL Draft and my highest-graded running back since Bijan Robinson. However, positional value will likely keep him out of the top five picks. All that means is a team drafting in the six-to-12 range will land an explosive weapon who will immediately upgrade an NFL offense.<\/p>\n

Diego Pavia, QB, Vanderbilt<\/p>\n

For those who saw \u201cPavia magic\u201d as more of a novelty last season, the performance by Vanderbilt\u2019s quarterback in 2025 has forced evaluators to take him more seriously as an NFL prospect. Similar to Mendoza\u2019s work in elevating Indiana, it has been incredible to see the rise of the Pavia-led Commodores over the past two years.<\/p>\n

This season, Pavia has accounted for 36 total touchdowns (27 passing, nine rushing) and ranks second in college football with 162 plays of 10-plus yards. His second reaction plays and his athletic instincts with the ball in his hands are what he does best. He went \u201cfull Pavia\u201d on this first-down play against Texas:<\/p>\n

Pavia is undersized; there is no way around that (scouts measured him at 5 foot 9 3\/4 in the spring). He has an extended release and a tendency to play backyard football, which can lead to negative results (eight interceptions in 2025). However, Pavia also showed noticeable improvements with his passing timing and placement as a super senior. His completion percentage is up almost 12 points from last season (59.4 to 71.2).<\/p>\n

Is that enough to be drafted? Maybe.<\/p>\n

NFL Draft projection:<\/strong> Over the last 30 years, just one Heisman Trophy winner went undrafted (Jason White). Pavia has mostly \u201cpriority free agent\u201d grades from NFL scouts, but even they admit that they won\u2019t be surprised if sneaks into the later rounds, especially after he meets with NFL coaches. Quarterback is an \u201cintangible\u201d position, and Pavia\u2019s competitive mentality will win over the room during pre-draft interviews.<\/p>\n

Julian Sayin, QB, Ohio State<\/p>\n

For the fifth time in the last eight years, an Ohio State quarterback has earned an invite to New York City as a Heisman finalist.<\/p>\n

In his first year as a starter, Sayin has completed 78.4 percent of his passes, which puts him on pace to break Bo Nix\u2019s single-season NCAA record (77.4). He also leads the FBS in passing efficiency (182.1) and sports a 31-to-6 touchdown-to-interception ratio.<\/p>\n

It helps when you\u2019re throwing to NFL-level wide receivers \u2014 I get that. However, it still takes a talented quarterback to see the field, manage the pocket and put the ball in a spot where his monster pass catchers can make plays.<\/p>\n

We are going to see this clip from the Wisconsin game on repeat when the networks talk about Carnell Tate during the draft process. But I also love what it shows about Sayin.<\/p>\n

Sayin feels the backside rush and quickly works to his left while staying in a read-to-throw position. The ball travels 50 yards in the air and comes down in a perfect place, where Tate can elevate between two defenders. It\u2019s a phenomenal play by the receiver, but let\u2019s give the quarterback credit, too.<\/p>\n

NFL Draft projection:<\/strong> Only a second-year player, Sayin is this year\u2019s lone finalist who isn\u2019t eligible for the 2026 NFL Draft. He made several mistakes this season that reflect his inexperience, especially against Indiana\u2019s versatile scheme in the Big Ten title game. However, Sayin will enter next season as one of the top quarterbacks to watch in what\u2019s expected to be a talent-rich 2027 QB draft class.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Athletic has live coverage of the Army-Navy game\u00a0 and the 2025 Heisman Trophy ceremony. Of the last…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":444970,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[1428,9443,1232,13874,4733,62,67,132,68,50643],"class_list":{"0":"post-444969","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nfl","8":"tag-college-football","9":"tag-indiana-hoosiers","10":"tag-nfl","11":"tag-notre-dame-fighting-irish","12":"tag-ohio-state-buckeyes","13":"tag-sports","14":"tag-united-states","15":"tag-unitedstates","16":"tag-us","17":"tag-vanderbilt-commodores"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115713760693644409","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/444969","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=444969"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/444969\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/444970"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=444969"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=444969"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=444969"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}