For the first time in the 12-year history of the College Football Playoff, both starting quarterbacks in the championship game are from Florida high schools.
Miami quarterback Carson Beck, a Mandarin graduate who won Offensive MVP in the Fiesta Bowl, leads the Hurricanes against Indiana and quarterback Fernando Mendoza, a Columbus graduate who won the Heisman Trophy and is the early favorite to be the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
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It’s the first time that two quarterbacks from Florida high schools will start in the national championship game since 1996, when Florida’s Danny Wuerffel (Fort Walton Beach) went up against Florida State’s Thad Busby (Pace).
Beck and Mendoza have never faced each other, although their alma maters do have some interesting history.
Beck guided Mandarin to a 37-35 win over Columbus in the FHSAA Class 8A state title in 2018. A year later, Mendoza transferred to Columbus. Alberto Mendoza, Indiana’s backup quarterback and Fernando’s younger brother, led Columbus to a 38-19 win against Mandarin in the 2023 FHSAA Class 4M title game.
Beck, who was a backup at Georgia when the Bulldogs won back-to-back national titles in 2021-22, has thrown for 3,581 yards and 29 touchdowns with 11 interceptions this season. He etched his name in Miami lore with his game-winning touchdown run against Ole Miss in the Fiesta Bowl.
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Mendoza. a transfer from Cal, has had a storybook campaign in what will almost certainly be his only season at Indiana. He has thrown for 3,349 yards, leads the nation with 41 touchdown passes and only six interceptions. He also leads the nation with a 188.0 passer rating, which is more than 10 points better than second place (Ohio State’s Julian Sayin).
Here’s a look at how the previous quarterbacks from Florida high schools have fared in the College Football Playoff championship game:
Mac Jones (Alabama, 2021)
The Bolles product had a record-breaking performance in the Crimson Tide’s 52-24 win over Ohio State. His marks for completions (36), completion percentage (80 percent) still are CFP championship game records. Jones also is tied with Joe Burrow for most touchdown passes in the title game (five). Three of Jones’ touchdown passes went to Heisman Trophy winner DeVonta Smith in the second quarter as Alabama built a 35-17 halftime lead. Jones finished the game having completed 36 of 45 passes for 464 yards. Despite the record-breaking outing, Smith (12 catches, 215 yards, three touchdowns) was named the Offensive MVP.
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Carson Beck (Georgia, 2023)
Beck didn’t get the start but played in mop-up duty at the end of Georgia’s 65-7 pounding of TCU. He completed two of his three pass attempts for 31 yards in the Bulldogs’ win.
Michael Penix Jr. (Washington, 2024)
Penix (Tampa Bay Tech) won the Maxwell Award and was the Heisman Trophy runner-up in his final season with the Huskies. He completed 27 of 51 passes for 25 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions in a 34-13 loss to Michigan. Penix threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Jalen McMillan in the final minute of the first half but tossed a pair of interceptions in the second half.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Fernando Mendoza vs Carson Beck: 2 QBs from Florida in CFP title game
