Two weeks into the 2026 college football season, Josh Hoover still looks like a quarterback worth keeping on the Heisman board - even if the market is starting to cool on him.
Indiana’s quarterback entered the year with real award buzz, but his odds have drifted from +1500 to +1750 at DraftKings Sportsbook. That slide has knocked him from fifth to eighth on the board, behind Miami QB Darian Mensah (+500), Ohio State WR Jeremiah Smith (+700), Notre Dame QB CJ Carr (+1000), Texas QB Arch Manning (+1000), Ole Miss QB Trinidad Chambliss (+1300), Miami WR Malachi Toney (+1300), and Ohio State QB Julian Sayin (+1500).
He’s also missing from On3’s Heisman Poll heading into Week 3, even as Mississippi State QB Kamario Taylor, Florida QB Jadan Baugh, and Duke RB Nate Sheppard made the cut.
Do you agree?🤔 https://t.co/YpZFYWgLgn pic.twitter.com/KtIBkLfD5s
- On3 (@On3) September 14, 2026
The funny part is that Hoover hasn’t actually done anything to hurt his case. Through two games, he’s completed 70.4% of his passes for 376 yards and 8 touchdowns without throwing an interception. And he’s done it while barely staying on the field in the second half, since Indiana built huge leads against both North Texas and Howard and sat him down early in each game.
That’s what makes the current Heisman chatter feel a little off. Yes, those opponents aren’t going to wow anyone, and nobody is handing out trophies for beating up on North Texas and Howard.
But Hoover has looked sharp, in command, and aggressive down the field. The throws have been there.
The control has been there.
It’s also worth noting how quickly some other Heisman numbers have moved. Miami has two players sitting near the top of the odds board despite games against Stanford and Florida A&M, and both Mensah and Toney have seen their odds shorten over the first two weeks. Hoover’s have gone the other way.
There’s also a recent blueprint worth remembering. Fernando Mendoza didn’t immediately explode onto the national scene last season, either.
He had no touchdown passes in the opener against Old Dominion and had 338 passing yards through two games. Hoover already has 376.
Mendoza then turned that into a historic run and a Heisman win while leading Indiana to a perfect 16-0 season and National Championship.
That doesn’t mean Hoover is Mendoza 2.0, and it doesn’t mean the rest of the season has to follow the same script. It does mean he’s in position to make noise if this start is any indication.
And if there’s one thing that should make people hesitate before writing him off, it’s Curt Cignetti’s track record with quarterbacks. He’s shown he knows how to get the best out of them, and Hoover might be the next one to cash in with a career year.
Over the next few weeks, the real question is simple: do Hoover’s odds keep sliding, or does the rest of the country finally catch up?
In Other News...
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What makes the rise so striking is how much of it has come from Cignettis eye for talent and his coaching, not just from competing at the top of the financial market. Indiana has shown it can dream bigger in the NIL era, but Cignettis success suggests the path forward is still about more than money, and the real question is how long the Hoosiers can keep building that way as the spending race keeps escalating. [Read more 🡒]
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Cignetti went on to play at West Virginia under his father, Frank Cignetti Sr., where he competed with Oliver Luck for the quarterback job and saw limited action. Soon after, he moved into coaching, beginning as a graduate assistant at Pitt in 1983 before eventually working with Nick Saban at Alabama. For Indiana fans, it is another reminder that the man now leading the program has spent most of his life knowing exactly what he was, and what he was not, on a football field. [Read more 🡒]
Darian DeVries Has A Chance To Change Indiana's Recruiting Buzz
Darian DeVries is still early in his run at Indiana, but the recruiting energy around his program is already starting to shift. This weekend, the Hoosiers are hosting 5-star 2028 combo guard Brady Pettigrew on an official visit, a notable get for a staff trying to build traction with elite prospects while also laying out its long-term vision in Bloomington.
Pettigrew is expected to keep taking visits to other programs, so Indiana is competing in a crowded race rather than enjoying any sort of clean lead. The Hoosiers are also in the mix for 5-star 2027 recruit Darius Wabbington, giving DeVries a chance to stack high-end targets around a class that already includes commitments from 4-star Chase Branham and Felix Kiehlneker, and maybe change the way Indiana is talked about on the trail. [Read more 🡒]