Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza is going to make a lot of money in the NFL as he is likely the No. 1 pick in the 2026 draft.
Mendoza spent just one season with the Indiana Hoosiers, but it ended in a perfect record and a national title. Mendoza’s quarterbacks coach, Chandler Whitmer, is also now going from Indiana to the NFL. Whitmer is set to become the quarterbacks coach with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network.
The Bucs agreed to terms with Chandler Whitmer as their quarterbacks coach, sources tell The Insiders.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) February 3, 2026
Whitmer, 34, spent last season Indiana’s co-OC/QB coach, developing Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza on the way to a national title. He had multiple NFL offers but chose… pic.twitter.com/3sLLbkpToo
Whitmer, 34, played quarterback at Illinois, Butler Community College and UConn. He then became a graduate assistant at Ohio State in 2019 and at Clemson in 2020 before going to the NFL.
Whitmer was an offensive quality control coach with the Los Angeles Chargers for three seasons before spending one year with the Atlanta Falcons as a pass game specialist.
That means Whitmer has worked with quarterbacks such as Michael Penix Jr., Justin Herbert, Trevor Lawrence and Justin Fields, as well as Mendoza.
Now, after just one year with Indiana, he is headed back to the NFL as he will work with Baker Mayfield in Tampa Bay.
