If you thought Curt Cignetti would sugarcoat after Indiana wrapped up its 2026 spring game inside Memorial Stadium, you’re wrong. He doesn’t do inflated praise; there’s no complacency in his vocabulary. Cignetti set the tone, saying IU still isn’t a good team. But there’s no panic because beneath that blunt honesty, there’s a roster in transition and a QB under the microscope.
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“We got a lot of work to do,” Cignetti said after IU’s spring game. “Got to have a great summer. And we’re not a great football team. We’re not a good football team right now. But we don’t need to be until we run out of the tunnel for the first game. So, got a lot of work to do. It’s going to look a lot different in the fall.”
While the Crimson offense technically won 26-13, the game’s actual story was a patchwork Hoosiers roster navigating injuries, a fact driven home when CB Ryland Gandy went down with the day’s only significant injury.
Although Cignetti was candid about Indiana, he’s willing to wait because the main narrative is about the one replacing a legend. Josh Hoover didn’t light it up, but he didn’t play small either.
"We got a lot of work to do. Gotta have a great summer." Curt Cignetti on @IndianaFootball’s spring game takeaways 👇
Replacing Fernando Mendoza—the Heisman winner, national champion, and No. 1 overall pick—is high pressure. Everyone knows that. But the TCU transfer came in with real production. He threw for 3,472 yards and 29 touchdowns in 2025, but Thursday’s game was more about reality. And early on, it wasn’t pretty.
Hoover’s rough 2-of-9 start was part of larger issues. Poor timing combined with a struggling offensive line led to missed reads and multiple drive-killing sacks, with players like Mario Landiano and Tobi Osunsamni giving up key pressure. In one early sequence, Hoover threw a promising 21-yard strike to LeBron Bond, but stalled momentum, penalties, and a sack that forced a 56-yard field goal immediately followed.
As the game wore on, Hoover settled, and his footwork tightened. He started finding Nick Marsh and Andrew Barker on short throws and finished 6-of-14 for 94 yards.
“I thought as it went along, he made a couple of plays,” Cignetti said of his new QB. “We’ve got to protect him. It’s been an issue kind of all spring. We’re not game planning anybody. He’s got some things he’s got to clean up. But he finished on a positive note.”
The sheer scale of this rebuild is evident in Cignetti’s 17 transfer portal additions and the ongoing quarterback competition behind Hoover, which features Grant Wilson, Tyler Cherry, and Jacob Bell all vying for a position.
Still, if Indiana doesn’t fix its protection issues, it won’t matter who’s at QB. And the head coach who’s overseeing a new roster knows that. Curt Cignetti brought in 17 transfer portal additions. Multiple QBs are rotating behind Hoover, including Grant Wilson, Tyler Cherry, and Jacob Bell. This is a rebuild. And as he said, this team doesn’t need to be good right now. It just needs to be ready when it matters.
Bloomington shows up for the Indiana spring game
Indiana’s football team may look unfinished, but the environment didn’t. This year’s spring game had a different vibe. Fans packed the east side of Memorial Stadium with tailgates. The reason? The Hoosiers are coming off a national title, and Mendoza just became the program’s first No. 1 overall NFL Draft pick in 88 years.
“I thought it was a tremendous turnout, a lot of excitement with Fernando, the draft, and getting back on the field,” Curt Cignetti said of the crowd. “Really appreciate the crowd coming out, and I thought it was a really good night.”
That support is also pressure that will reveal whether last season was a peak or the beginning of something sustainable. Indiana’s spring game provided consistent clues about the team’s status as they head into summer.
“Once you have your team, you’re looking for play-in, play-out, day-in, day-out consistency and improvement,” Cignetti said. “So, the new guys, it’s our second time through it. Any time you do something twice, you’re better the second time. And we want to push and take this team as far as we can in terms of their improvement. And then get out there and play.”
That’s the only blueprint that matters right now. Because when this team runs out of the tunnel for Week 1, nobody’s going to care how honest the spring evaluation was. They’ll care whether the offensive line holds up and whether Hoover takes command. Right now, Indiana isn’t a good football team. But Cignetti is betting on August. And if he’s right, this honest spring might end up being the moment everything started falling into place.
