QB Josh Hoover faces new challenge in replacing Heisman winner on defending champion Indiana

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Josh Hoover's player bio looks different from most of this year's other quarterbacks in the Bowl Subdivision.

He's already logged 31 career starts, thrown for more than 9,000 yards, won a bowl game MVP award, set multiple school records and been in line for conference and national honors.

Now, Hoover is about to embark on a new journey, one that has come full circle and puts him squarely under an unusual spotlight in replacing a Heisman Trophy-winner for No. 6 Indiana, the defending national champion.

“I wanted to get better, I wanted to be the best quarterback I could be," Hoover said after Indiana's spring game in April. “I felt like coming here was going to give me a chance to, No. 1, get better, get developed by some great coaches and, No. 2, be part of a great program with a bunch of great guys who are unselfish. They're not me guys, they're team guys. That's what I wanted, that's the vision I had.”

Hoover hasn't spoken with reporters since that night, and he's not expected to talk again until after making his Indiana debut Sept. 5 against North Texas.

But the former TCU star would prefer to let his actions speak more than words as he gets acclimated to the expectations of two-time national Coach of the Year Curt Cignetti. Hoover has spent these past few months studying his playbook, getting in sync with new teammates and figuring out where he fits in this suddenly high-profile program.

At first glance, Hoover looks like a perfect fit for Cignetti.

Hoover's comments almost mirror those Heisman-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza repeatedly made last year, and Hoover's scouting report seems familiar, too. Among the strengths are a strong mind that leads to quick decisions. He throws effectively into tight windows, and he should be helped by both his on-field experience and the time he's spent as a team leader.

The biggest question is whether he can cut down on the turnovers. Hoover threw 13 interceptions and lost two fumbles last year and has been responsible for 33 total giveaways in the three seasons as TCU's starter. Cignetti wants those numbers reduced and believes Hoover will be helped by playing in a more balanced offense than he had with the Horned Frogs.

Cignetti's first two Indiana quarterbacks, Kurtis Rourke and Mendoza, also arrived with questions. Rourke had a history of injuries and almost no experience against Power Four foes. Mendoza had been sacked 42 times in his final season at California.

Each answered the questions by leading to the Hoosiers to the best back-to-back seasons in school history. Hoover would like to extend the good vibes, though upstaging the first 16-0 season in major college football since the 1890s will be a big challenge.

“I don't think there's any question he's improved and is more confident,” Cignetti said Monday. “There's always improvement that can be made. There's still some missed opportunities that can be converted and executed. If you want to make a comparison, you've got to kind of look at where we were last year at this time. We walked off the field after the second scrimmage and we really weren't good at all throwing the football. We weren't feeling very good about things.”

That doesn't appear to be the case now.

Receivers rave about Hoover's work ethic, his ability to communicate and his insatiable desire to get the most out of an offense he's still mastering. Charlie Becker, Indiana's top returnee at receiver, called Hoover a “beast” earlier this month.

“He texts me all the time, like every weekend,” Becker said. “During the weekdays, he says, ‘Hey do you want to throw, work on this connection?’ He takes that out to all of our wide receivers and we're out there doing spot catches, making sure our legs aren't dead. But Josh just really wants to see all of us succeed, and he wants to build connections with all of us because you never know what can happen."

That's how teammates often described Mendoza even before he becoming the school's first Heisman winner and No. 1 overall draft pick.

But Hoover, who initially committed to Indiana in June 2021 before signing with TCU in 2022, didn't come back to Indiana just to replicate Mendoza's success. He came to Bloomington to meet Indiana's high expectations and to develop more skills with a coaching staff that turns transfer quarterbacks into all-conference honorees and even NFL draft picks.

“For me, coming in here it’s all about trying to be the best version of myself and come in and be who I am every day,” Hoover said. “That’s all I have to do is be myself. Fernando is an unbelievable player, an unbelievable person and I have to come in and just be myself and be the best I can be for IU and make guys around me better.”

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