The Mendoza name has become synonymous with resilience during Indiana’s memorable 2026 national championship run. While Fernando and Alberto are enjoying the spotlight at the college level, the family recently had another reason to celebrate that is just as meaningful.

On Saturday, the youngest brother of the lot, Max, recovered his accepted letter to Christopher Columbus High School, the iconic Miami school where both Fernando and Alberto also started their journey.

“Max got into our high school, Christopher Columbus High School,” Alberto told Holly Rowe of Sportsiren. “Congratulations to Max. He’s going to be the best explorer yet. He’s going to leave a great legacy, better than me and my brother at Christopher Columbus High School.”

Fernando Mendoza also expressed his pride in his brother Max and shared his excitement for the future.

“Max Mendoza, my younger brother, is so proud of him; he got into Columbus,” Fernando Mendoza said in Indiana’s media session on Saturday, January 17. “It was at 4:00 p.m. He was really awaiting that deadline. So proud of Max, and I’m really looking forward to see all the great things he does at Columbus.”

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Max is 14 years old, six years younger than Alberto, and will now be attending Columbus for next fall, following his family’s legacy. He was the starting QB for his school in 2020 and 2021, earning All-Miami-Dade County honors and ranking No. 14 in the country as a junior.

Fernando played for the high school from 2019 to 2021 and was a backup QB as a part of Columbus’s 2019 FHSAA Class 8A state championship team. After Fernando graduated, Alberto led the program to back-to-back state titles.

Max has dreams of becoming a sports broadcaster, which he shared with Kelsey Nicole Nelson in December 2025. While the football interest remains unknown. However, the expectation on him raised the bar, making fans pour love and wishes for the younger Mendoza.

Fans pour congratulations & wishes for Max Mendoza

As soon as Alberto broke the news of Max joining Columbus High School, fans filled the comment section praising and sharing their excitement for their future. Some fans adored the Mendoza brothers and their family, writing, “Great kid and a great family,” “I love this family,” and “These Mendoza guys are so nice.”

Some fans alerted the recruiters to grab him for the future class: “Max is going to be the best explorer yet,” “Max is future QB1 at Christopher Columbus,” “Congrats to Max and all the new class of 2030 Explorers!”

One fan who heard about Max wondered if he’s an athlete and wrote, “Max strikes me more of a scientist and chess master… is he an athlete too?” A fan who met Max Mendoza before wished him the best for his future: “Had the pleasure of meeting Max and their uncle at the Cal game last year.  Really nice people.  Wish them all nothing but the best.” 

An Indiana fan wished Max to follow their brother’s footsteps to be the Hoosier and wrote, “How can you not love the Mendoza family? So glad they are Hoosiers. Pure class.”