Podcast Summary: The Triple Option
Episode: Fernando Mendoza Joins, Playoff Bracket Reaction, James Franklin to Va. Tech & Top 3 Comebacks!
Date: November 19, 2025
Hosts: Urban Meyer, Mark Ingram II, Rob Stone
Special Guest: Fernando Mendoza, Indiana QB
Episode Overview
This lively episode of The Triple Option dives into a transforming college football landscape. The hosts offer immediate, unfiltered reactions to the latest playoff bracket, dissect the James Franklin-to-Virginia Tech move, passionately debate conference supremacy, and celebrate epic gridiron comebacks. The centerpiece is a revealing and detailed conversation with Indiana Heisman candidate Fernando Mendoza—who impresses with his football intellect and leadership philosophy.
Key Topics & Discussion Points
1. College Football Playoff Bracket: Reactions & Implications
Timestamps: 00:16–08:17
- Major Shakeup: Seven ranked teams lost, with prominent programs (Bama, Texas) dropping and others (Oregon, Oklahoma) rising.
- Alabama’s Slide: After a loss to Oklahoma featuring self-inflicted wounds, Bama drops to #10 but still controls its destiny for a playoff spot.
- Mark Ingram (02:52): "They deserve that. You go in and have three turnovers, you know, botch, snap, hold and kick...they’re lucky they're not lower."
- Expanded Playoff Mechanics: The 12-team playoff format, with automatic bids for highest-ranked conference champions and first-round byes for top 4 seeds, stirs much debate.
- Urban Meyer (03:42): "Every time I look at this, I just wish I was a coach in this era...These teams are all still alive."
- Debate Over Style Points & Committee Decisions: Meyer voices continued skepticism about the subjectivity of committee selections and calls for more on-field, conference-based play-ins.
- Urban Meyer (05:00): "You not only got to win, you got to win big, because the style points. There’s people sitting in that room watching these scores that really can’t watch the game because they really don’t know what they’re watching."
2. Conference Power Rankings – SEC vs. Big Ten
Timestamps: 08:17–10:47
- Return of SEC Dominance: With nine SEC teams in the top 25, Urban calls the SEC "back" as the country's most competitive conference.
- Urban Meyer (08:49): "The SEC is back. It is the top conference in college football."
- Quality of Schedules: Ingram and Meyer compare the weekly grind of SEC schedules with the Big Ten, highlighting the significance of every game.
3. James Franklin to Virginia Tech – Breaking Down the Coaching Carousel
Timestamps: 10:47–15:32
- Big Hire: James Franklin leaves Penn State to take over at Virginia Tech in a move dubbed "not just good, but great."
- Urban Meyer (10:52): "I don’t think it’s a good one. It is a great one...He’s a culture changer, a program changer."
- Evolution of Coaching Hires: Meyer and Ingram discuss the trend from hiring veteran “program builders” toward promoting high-profile coordinators straight into top jobs.
- Urban Meyer (12:27): "You're not going to the MAC anymore…Now an AD has to pull the string on a guy he really doesn't know."
4. Highlighting Playmakers: Deuce Deuce Dog of the Week & Heisman Talk
Timestamps: 20:21–24:09
- Mark’s Dog of the Week: RB Ahmad Hardy (25 carries, 300 yards, 3 TDs) celebrated for versatility and explosiveness.
- Mark Ingram II (20:21): "He can give it to you how you want it…He is a certified R beast and dog of the week."
- Joey McGuire Advocates for His Player: Texas Tech’s coach campaigns for a defensive player’s Heisman consideration—receiving a standing ovation from Urban.
- Urban Meyer (22:11): "You're damn right it is [the head coach’s job to sell players]. Those players play their ass off for you."
- Systemic Heisman Bias: Hosts lament the trophy’s QB/favorite team focus and advocate for broader positional representation.
- Mark Ingram II (23:09): "Not only quarterbacks deserve love...Best player in the country, that’s who wins that award."
5. Elite Interview: Fernando Mendoza, Indiana QB
Timestamps: 25:14–55:42
- Football IQ: Mendoza delivers a detailed breakdown (including play calls and reads) of a legendary game-winning drive vs. Penn State, amazing Urban Meyer with his recall and analysis.
- Urban Meyer (30:13): "Look at your face, Fernando. This is as intense and happy as he’s been in years."
- Mendoza (27:31): "Taking a sack, especially in two-minute drives, is one of the commandments on what not to do...We were actually ahead of the clock."
- Mendoza (37:04): "I actually got my weekly process through a lineage of Drew Brees...and when [my coach] got to Indiana, he's like, 'this is how we’re going to do things.'"
- Leadership & Team Culture: Discusses Indiana’s underdog mentality, brotherhood, and resilience, crediting both staff and teammates.
- Mendoza (41:17): "Our superpower is playing like a band of brothers together…We're not really focused on individual statistics or prowess."
- Q&A with the Hosts:
- On advice for young QBs: Be approachable, integrated, and family-like with teammates—echoing Drew Brees’ leadership style.
- Mark Ingram II (46:10): "When you have your quarterback, your star quarterback, being one of the guys…you never want to let that guy down because that is your brother."
- On what separates great QBs: Outlandish competitiveness and willingness to "street fight" whether in ping pong, practice, or a two-minute drill.
- Urban Meyer (49:12): "The best quarterbacks, the best coaches, the best everybody I’ve ever been around are the competitive nut jobs."
- On handling Heisman hype: Mendoza focuses on the present, placing the team before individual accolades.
- Mendoza (52:12): "All the other great awards…it’ll all come. So my thing is to really just enjoy the present moment."
- On playing with his brother: Offers a heartfelt account of how their sibling rivalry pushes both to excel on and off the field.
- Mendoza (54:07): "It’s just us pushing each other…sometimes it ends up becoming an ego thing."
- On advice for young QBs: Be approachable, integrated, and family-like with teammates—echoing Drew Brees’ leadership style.
6. Three & Out: Greatest Comebacks in College Football
Timestamps: 58:11–65:37
- Hosts’ Top Three Comebacks:
- Mark Ingram:
- Michigan State’s 38-point comeback vs. Northwestern (2006)
- The Stanford Band Play
- Alabama’s OT National Title win (Tua to DeVonta Smith)
- Urban Meyer:
- Indiana (Mendoza) comeback at Penn State (2025)—calls it "one of the greatest drives in the history of college football."
- Ohio State’s rallies vs. Penn State (2017, 2018)
- Rob Stone:
- Michigan State’s “Trouble with the Snap” (2015)
- Auburn’s “Prayer at Jordan-Hare” (2013)
- Auburn’s “Kick Six” (Iron Bowl, 2013)
- Bonus banter on recent Iron Bowl dramatics, including the “Gravedigger” (Bama’s 4th and 31 vs. Auburn).
- Mark Ingram II (65:13): “It was 4th and 31 and we put him in a coffin and we grave dug them. Fourth and 31, back corner of the end zone, Isaiah Bond.”
- Mark Ingram:
7. Rapid-Fire Picks & Closing Thoughts
Timestamps: 66:12–71:04
- Game Picks: Discussion of Oklahoma-Missouri, USC-Oregon, Pitt-Georgia Tech, with analysis on matchups, defensive strengths, and conference stakes.
- Praise for Mendoza: Hosts close with high praise for Mendoza’s poise and intellect, predicting NFL teams will “love him.”
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- Urban Meyer on playoff expansion: (03:42) “Every time I look at this, I just wish I was a coach in this era...These teams are all still alive.”
- Urban Meyer on coaching hires: (12:27) “Now an AD has to pull the string on a guy that he really doesn't know. It's a complex world out there right now.”
- Mendoza on learning and preparation: (37:04) "I actually got my weekly process through a lineage of kind of Drew Brees...When he got to Indiana, he’s like, ‘this is how we’re going to do things.’”
- Ingram on leadership: (46:10) "When you have your star quarterback being one of the guys...you never want to let that guy down because that is your brother.”
- Urban on competitiveness: (49:12) “The best quarterbacks, the best coaches, the best everybody I’ve ever been around are the competitive nut jobs.”
- Mendoza on team culture: (41:17) “Our superpower is playing like a band of brothers together…We're not really focused on individual statistics or prowess.”
- Ingram on "Gravedigger": (65:13) “Fourth and 31 and we put him in a coffin and we grave dug them.”
Noteworthy Timestamps
- Playoff Bracket Talk: 00:16–08:17
- Conference Power & Schedules: 08:17–10:47
- Coaching Carousel – Franklin: 10:47–15:32
- Deuce Deuce Dog & Heisman Chat: 20:21–24:09
- Fernando Mendoza Interview: 25:14–55:42
- Game-winning drive breakdown: 27:31–37:04
- Preparation/Learning lineages: 37:04
- Leadership & Team Culture: 41:17; 47:57–49:12
- Heisman Moment Response: 52:05
- Three & Out (Comebacks): 58:11–65:37
- Bonus Iron Bowl Banter: 65:06–65:27
Episode Tone
Uplifting, high-energy, and deeply knowledgeable—blending playful collegiate rivalry with serious X’s and O’s, behind-the-scenes anecdotes, and meaningful discussion on leadership, team building, and the evolving game.
This summary captures the episode's core themes, most insightful moments, and distinctive voices. If you missed this episode, you’ll come away understanding what’s at stake in college football right now—and why Fernando Mendoza might be the smartest, most meticulous QB in the game.