Dave Portnoy led the fury among stunned college football fans who called out the Miami Hurricanes’ Jakobe Thomas for his violent hit on Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza.
During the first quarter of the College Football Playoff final in Miami on Monday night, Mendoza faked a run before handing the ball off to his teammate.
But as he stepped to his left, Thomas hit Mendoza purposely in the facemask with his helmet.
It was a shockingly late and brutal hit that left Mendoza on the turf in pain.
When he eventually got back to his feet, blood started to pour from the Hoosiers quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner’s mouth.
Portnoy immediately posted on X: ‘Apparently refs are gonna let Miami obliterate Mendoza with cheap shots.’
Fernando Mendoza was left bloodied by the brutal hit by Miami’s Jakobe Thomas on Monday
Thomas (right) smashed his helmet into Mendoza’s facemask, causing the Indiana QB to bleed
One fan commented: ‘Jakobe Thomas is a thug that has zero future in this world. Classy as always.’
Another posted: ‘Miami resorting to cheap shots on Mendoza. Classy as always.’
‘How do they let Mendoza get sucker punched with a helmet go?’ another asked before adding: ‘That was a blatant miss. Dirty play.’
One viewer added: ‘Mendoza may not last the full game. Someone definitely put a hit out on him the way Miami is hitting him.’
‘Textbook targeting on Mendoza who doesn’t even have the ball. Sick,’ another said sarcastically.
Others called out the ‘ridiculously late’ hit on Mendoza while some blasted the referees for failing to punish Thomas.
Indiana coach Curt Cignetti slammed the officials as he walked off for half time for missing three ‘obvious’ calls on his quarterback in one drive.
Mendoza and the Hoosiers took control of the final in the first half, taking a 10-0 lead thanks to Riley Nowakowski’s touchdown midway through the second quarter at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.
There was a star-studded crowd in attendance for the game, including president Donald Trump and NFL icon Tom Brady.
Fans rushed to social media to destroy Thomas for the shameless hit on a helpless Mendoza
Trump was greeted by huge cheers from the Miami crowd after arriving to watch the alongside members of his family.
He was joined at the final by his daughter Ivanka, her husband Jared Kushner and their two sons Joseph Frederick and Theo James.
Granddaughter Kai, the eldest child of Donald Trump Jr, was also in attendance with her mom Vanessa, as was Lara Trump, the wife of the president’s second son Eric, with their young daughter Carolina.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio joined the group on the night and was even seen walking on the field prior to kickoff.
After arriving at the stadium, Trump was seen waving to fans from behind the bulletproof glass in his VIP suite as he prepared to watch the game unfold.
When he was shown on the big screen during the American national anthem, the president appeared to get a huge ovation from the crowd inside Hard Rock Stadium.
