Replacing a Heisman Trophy winner is difficult in itself. Replacing a Heisman Trophy winner who led Indiana to a 16-0 national championship season is an entirely unique ordeal. Josh Hoover now carries that weight as he comes from TCU to Indiana to follow Fernando Mendoza’s footsteps. And for Curt Cignetti, Hoover still has some tests to pass.

“We run the ball even with Fernando 60-40 and play great defense and great special teams,” Curt Cignetti said on July 18 on The Pat McAfee Show. “So, what we’ll ask him to do is a little different than what he was asked to do before. And I’m anxious to see the kind of improvement he’s made in fall camp.”

Hoover is not Mendoza, and his skill set is different. Mendoza finished 2025 with 3,535 passing yards, 41 touchdowns, a 72% completion rate, and seven rushing touchdowns. Hoover enters Indiana with 9,629 career passing yards, 71 touchdowns, and 33 interceptions across three college seasons. What he hasn’t demonstrated yet is his rushing ability.

At Cal, Mendoza had sporadically shown his ability with the legs. In total, he had nearly 200 rushing yards for 4 touchdowns when he arrived. Indiana recognized that ability and designed QB runs as he scored 7 TDs on the ground last year. One of them was also the iconic leap into the end zone that won Indiana the national title against Miami. Hoover, though, has negative rushing yards in his TCU career. Cignetti has a plan for how to utilize the QB, but it’ll need patience.

“Well, they all have to have arm talent, be able to extend play, see the field, be a great competitor, and be tough,” Cignetti said about his requirements for a QB. “We develop them, I think, only because we’re smart. We don’t have a magic wand. We try to give them a good run game, a good defense, and let them know every once in a while, punts are positive plays. And they all build off early-season success, and I expect Josh to do the same thing.”

Hoover has already played 36 college games and led TCU to an 18-8 record over the last two seasons. His arm talent is also a major part of his appeal. The QB can attack deeper areas of the field, make difficult throws outside the numbers, and extend plays when protection breaks down. The trade-off is clear: Indiana must help him reduce the turnovers that followed him from TCU.

Indiana is not asking him to carry the entire offense. The Hoosiers return Charlie Becker, who had 34 catches for 679 yards and four touchdowns last season. They also added Michigan State receiver Nick Marsh, who had 662 yards and six touchdowns in 2025. The offensive line has experienced pieces returning. On defense, Rolijah Hardy returns after recording 102 tackles and eight sacks, and Isaiah Jones had 78 tackles and seven sacks. That combination gives Hoover a strong safety net.

The QB will also have a different experience from the scheme standpoint. Last season, TCU threw the ball 60% of its offensive plays. On the other hand, Indiana ran the ball 60% of the time. And while Hoover’s arm will be less relied upon compared to his former program, the QB may be needed in clutch moments, like how Mendoza did against Penn State last year.