Mendez was born with tetra-amelia syndrome, which left him without arms or legs. Mendez didn’t allow his differences to limit him, though, and developed a passion for coaching by learning the game of football by playing Madden video games.
With a dream of one day becoming a head football coach, Mendez worked for years as an assistant at various schools, until he was finally given the opportunity he’d been working for. Mendez took over as the coach for Prospect High’s JV team and led his players to an incredible 8-2 season.