On night of Fernando Mendoza's No.1 selection, Josh Hoover displays progress as his successor

As Fernando Mendoza’s No. 1 overall selection was shown on the videoboard above the south end zone of Memorial Stadium, the fans in attendance stood, clapped and cheered in what was another historic moment for Indiana football.

But down on the sideline, Josh Hoover looked up, watched, and then jogged right back out onto the field. While Mendoza celebrated with his family in Miami, Hoover led the Indiana offense during its Spring Game – exactly where Mendoza was one year ago.

Mendoza transferred in from a Power Conference school, used the spring to get acclimated to Indiana’s offense, and then hit the ground running en route to a 16-0 season filled with broken records, a Heisman Trophy and national championship.

Being the successor to that historic season is a tall task, but the blueprint is exactly the same for Hoover. He joins IU with multiple years of high-major football under his belt, experience with a similar RPO system that IU employs, and a commitment to improving each and every day – all similar to Mendoza when he arrived in Bloomington.

But the Spring Game provided the first public test to see Hoover’s progress after four weeks of spring practice – a chance to witness how far he’s come along, and to potentially compare him to where Mendoza was a year ago.

Now, comparing them directly isn’t an exact science, as they’re two different quarterbacks with different frames and skill sets, but Curt Cignetti did mention how his new quarterback has looked compared to his title-winning signal-caller from 2025.

“I’d say Josh is right where Fernando was last year and Kurtis [Rourke] the year before,” Cignetti told WISH-TV before the Spring Game. “He knows how to play quarterback, he’s thrown for a lot of yards and touchdown passes. He’s a quick-thinker, nice touch, accurate with the ball, so I like where he’s at.”

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Indiana’s head coach made sure to acknowledge that every quarterback has their fair share of struggles throughout the spring, and Hoover has been no different. Mendoza himself admits that he was a raw prospect before breaking out at Indiana, as the now-No. 1 selection had some growing pains last spring for the Hoosiers.

For Hoover, those pains presented themselves in the first quarter of Thursday’s contest, as he threw for just 33 yards on 2-for-8 passing (per TheHoosier.com’s unofficial stat-keeping). Not the greatest start, but Hoover also wasn’t given much, if any, time to throw. With an offensive line composed of just three of five expected starters, Indiana’s defensive line had a field day.

Hoover was constantly under pressure, and was sacked three times in the first quarter, but the TCU transfer never looked fazed. The results may not have reflected it, but Hoover appeared confident and poised from the get-go, something that Cignetti has mentioned throughout the spring.

“He’s a process-oriented guy,” Cignetti said after the game

“Josh is a good decision maker. He’s not a guy that’s gonna stand in the pocket. I know we got off from it a little bit tonight, but he’s not a guy that really takes sacks in practice,” Isaiah Jones added.

Hoover himself mentioned that he’s gotten more comfortable as spring has gone on. For him and the rest of the transfers, the top priority was getting acclimated to the schemes on the field, but also becoming aligned with Cignetti’s vision off the field as well.

With his comment about Hoover being “process-oriented,” it’s clear that the quarterback has fit right in with the Hoosiers’ mindset, and that leaves the adjustment on the field for Hoover to rise to his true potential.

“Anytime you get a new offense, the first step is learning what it is, learning what you do, what they want, what their idea, what their picture is for the plays and how they run this offense,” Hoover said on Thursday night. “As spring went on, it just got better and better as far as knowing what they wanted and marrying up footwork and reads and seeing coverage, seeing defense.”

In the second and final quarter of the Spring Game, Hoover was 4-of-5 passing for 71 yards. He still wasn’t perfect, but it was a substantial improvement over what was seen early on.

Hoover’s final stat line was 6-of-13 passing for 94 yards, while Mendoza’s from a year ago included 9-of-12 passing, 110 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Obviously there’s more context than what their numbers were, but both Hoover and Mendoza didn’t turn heads in their respective spring games.

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Hoover might not have had the start he was looking for, but with a short-handed offensive line, he made up for it in the second half. His connections with Nick Marsh and Tyler Morris were impressive, as they put on display the work that they’ve accomplished throughout spring practice.

There’s still a long way to go for Hoover, but that was the case for Mendoza as well. With a blueprint in place from Cignetti, offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan and quarterbacks coach Tino Sunseri, Hoover has all the tools to succeed – now, it’s about putting in the work in preparation for fall camp.

“It’s just a day-by-day process and you gotta go to work and attack it every day and that’s what we’re gonna do. So I’m excited about it,” he said.

With just about three months until fall camp, Hoover looks to replicate the progression that Mendoza made between the Spring Game and when the Hoosiers begin official practices in the beginning of August.

Filling the shoes of the No. 1 overall pick is a monumental challenge, but Hoover has met it head-on, with a public display on Thursday night at Memorial Stadium.

“He’s embraced that challenge,” Cignetti said. “He’s just trying to make the most of every rep right now.”

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