Indiana is asking Josh Hoover to step into a big spotlight, and the move makes sense for a program that has already seen what a transfer quarterback can do. Curt Cignetti is turning to Hoover after Fernando Mendoza’s run in Bloomington, hoping the next portal pickup can keep the Hoosiers rolling.
Hoover arrives from TCU with a real résumé and plenty of experience. He spent three seasons with the Horned Frogs after a winding recruiting path that once included Indiana. Back in 2021, when Tom Allen was still running the program, Hoover committed to the Hoosiers before ultimately signing with TCU.
His background starts in Rockwall, Texas, just outside Dallas, where he put together a massive high school career. Over three seasons tracked by MaxPreps, he threw for 9,750 yards, 108 touchdowns and 29 interceptions. The recruiting industry viewed him as a three-star quarterback and the No. 41 overall signal-caller in the 2022 class, with offers from Arkansas, TCU, Houston, SMU, UTSA, Tulane and others.
At TCU, Hoover redshirted in 2022, then started to carve out a bigger role in 2023. As a redshirt freshman, he played in 10 games and made six starts.
He opened that season behind Chandler Morris, but Morris’ re-injured MCL opened the door, and Hoover finished the year as the starter over the final six games. In those 10 appearances, he threw for 2,237 yards, 15 touchdowns and only one interception.
The production climbed once Morris transferred to North Texas before the 2024 season. Hoover took over the job and delivered a major statistical season, piling up 3,949 passing yards with 27 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.
TCU went 9-4 and closed the year with a New Mexico Bowl win over Louisiana. He reportedly drew a lucrative offer from Tennessee for 2025, but stayed put in Fort Worth.
Last season, Hoover kept putting up numbers, finishing with 3,472 passing yards, 29 touchdowns and 13 interceptions for the Horned Frogs.
Indiana moved quickly once Hoover entered the transfer portal on Dec. 18. He landed with the Hoosiers on Jan. 4 and carried an NIL Valuation of $4 million, per On3Sports.
There’s an obvious comparison hanging over the move because Mendoza’s transfer success at Indiana set the standard. Cignetti said last month that the temptation to line the two up is understandable, but he pushed back on the idea that Mendoza arrived as a finished product.
“I think what you gotta do is if you wanna make a comparison, you gotta kinda look at where we were last year at this time,” Cignetti said on Aug. 30 via the Indy Star. “We walked off the field the second scrimmage and really weren't good at all throwing the football. And we weren't feeling very good about things.”
Hoover also has a connection to the Mendoza family through Indiana’s recent quarterback shuffle. Fernando Mendoza’s younger brother, Alberto, was on the Hoosiers last season, but after Hoover transferred to Bloomington, Alberto entered the portal and signed with Georgia Tech. He has since been named the Yellow Jackets’ 2026 starter.
If Indiana is looking for the one area Hoover needs to clean up, it’s ball security. Across his three seasons, he has thrown 33 interceptions, and he has also lost nine of 14 fumbles.
Josh Hoover stats
Season Team G Comp% Yards INT
2022 TCU 1 100 2 0
2023 TCU 10 62.1 2,206 9
2024 TCU 13 66.5 3,949 11
2025 TCU 12 65.9 3,472 13
In Other News...
Nico Radicic Is Already Crucial For Indiana And Still Has More To Prove
Since Curt Cignetti arrived in 2024, Nico Radicic has quietly become one of Indiana footballs most dependable weapons, the kind of specialist whose value shows up in tight games and then fades back into the background. He has been highly accurate on extra points and has converted most of his field goals, giving the Hoosiers a level of stability at kicker that is easy to overlook until the pressure rises.
That reliability mattered most in the 2026 National Championship game, when Radicic drilled a 35-yard field goal late to help extend Indianas lead. Even with that kind of moment on his resume, there is still a layer of unfinished business for him, especially as he works to improve from longer range while carrying Lou Groza Award watch-list expectations into the next stretch of his career. [Read more 🡒]
Curt Cignetti Uses These Indiana Games For Something Bigger Than Wins
Indianas early non-conference games have not always looked like the kind that turn heads on a national stage, but for Curt Cignetti and his staff, they serve a larger purpose. Against Florida International and Old Dominion, Indiana has treated those matchups as a laboratory of sorts, using them to test ideas, sort out player roles and see what actually translates once Big Ten play begins.
One of the clearest examples has been the way the Hoosiers have worked to tap into Fernando Mendozas mobility while also keeping trusted targets like Elijah Sarratt and Omar Cooper Jr. involved in the ways that have already proven useful. The point is not to pile up blowouts or chase style points in September. It is to leave those first few games with answers, even if the scoreboard looks more ordinary than the programs bigger ambitions. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana May Get Two Defensive Boosts With Bigger Questions Still Looming
Indiana could have a pair of defensive pieces back in the mix against North Texas, with Stephen Daley and Kellan Wyatt temporarily cleared to play after an Indiana circuit court issued a temporary restraining order. Their status had been tied up in NCAA appeals connected to a federal injunction and updated eligibility rules, leaving their availability uncertain as the Hoosiers worked through the legal side of the situation.
Daley and Wyatt have continued practicing with Indiana, and both are expected to be close to medical clearance for the upcoming game. Even so, the larger issue has not fully gone away, which leaves the Hoosiers waiting on how this all settles beyond the short-term relief of having two defenders available now. [Read more 🡒]