Senior quarterback Josh Hoover threw 13 interceptions in 2025, but at Indiana, he will not have to carry that burden alone. Head coach Curt Cignetti is giving him something he never had at TCU, which is a never-seen-before ammunition that the Hoosiers already possess.

That ammunition is not a secret weapon. It is Indiana’s elite defense and a strong run game, two things Hoover never had as a safety net at TCU. During his time at TCU, he had to throw often and take risks. At Indiana, he will not need to carry the offense alone. At Bloomington, Josh Hoover got “two new best friends,” Curt Cignetti said, a kind of support he never enjoyed as a consistent safety net at TCU.

That changes the math for Hoover, who threw 13 interceptions in 2025 with the Horned Frogs. Cignetti is not promising a perfect season, but he believes this environment gives his new quarterback the best shot to cut mistakes and elevate his game.

“I think anytime that you can play good defense and run football, you’re taking a lot of pressure off the quarterback,” said Cignetti during his July 15 appearance on the Up & Adams show with Kay Adams. “We’ve never been a team that gave the quarterback the ball and said, ‘Hey, go out and win the game for us.'”

“So I think that’ll take a lot of pressure off him, and I think you’ll see him elevate his game even more,” Cignetti added.

Indiana is building a safer, smarter environment around Hoover instead of asking him to fix every problem on his own. In this setup, he should see more manageable passing situations and carry less mental load snap to snap. That means smarter play-calling, fewer forced throws, and a cleaner rhythm, all designed to boost scoring chances while cutting down the mistakes and turnovers that followed him at TCU.

Hoover still has to protect the ball. He threw 33 interceptions in four years at TCU, a number that raised eyebrows across the Big 12. Indiana is not promising a perfect season, but the staff believes the system and talent around him can help him cut down those mistakes. In IU’s 2026 spring game, he completed 6 of 14 passes for 94 yards, an early sign of his progress. Cignetti expects him to grow like the program’s recent successful quarterbacks.

“To be quite honest, I think he’s taken the same sort of path that all the other ones have,” said Cignetti. “You know, in spring ball, they’re learning offense, a new way of practicing, teammates, some good days, some bad days, good plays, bad plays, and are a lot better in the summer, and we’re not with them a lot in the summer. Get it to my strength and conditioning staff and then our different guy in August camp.”

2025, Fernando Mendoza learned the system fast and led the Hoosiers to an undefeated season and a national title in one year. Cignetti believes Hoover can do the same with the same support. “He’s [Hoover] got a body of work in terms of winning football games, passing yards, and touchdown passes,” said Cignetti in April 2026, via CBS Sports.

Like Mendoza, Hoover will lean on a defense that ranked first in the conference and a run game that controls the clock. The system is the same. The question is whether Hoover can match Mendoza’s results. If Hoover’s interception rate does not drop, the system will face questions. But Cignetti believes the support is strong enough to make Hoover a better decision-maker. The proof will come when the season starts.