Indiana gutted out a win over Michigan, but the Hoosiers need more from Josh Hoover if they want to repeat

The fifth-year quarterback just posted his worst performance as a starter since 2023

Indiana's first win at Michigan since 1967 didn't feel as jubilant as it should've.

In fact, the defending national champions enter the home stretch with more questions than answers offensively after Curt Cignetti admitted he thought about benching starting quarterback Josh Hoover at halftime with Indiana leading 6-0.

The fifth-year signal caller finished 8 for 18 for 81 yards passing and his first interception of the season, leading to a 22.6 QBR -- the lowest output since his first career start (13.4) at TCU in 2023. Hoover scored the eventual game-winning touchdown on a 4-yard run in the extra session, but his performance left much to be desired.

"There were a lot of discussions about (backup quarterback) Grant Wilson and Josh Hoover in the second half because Grant had a good week of practice and is really capable," Cignetti said. "At the end of the day, it's been Josh's season, and even though he's not 100%, we've got to finish it out with him, and he responded."

Hoover helped the Hoosiers avoid losing two straight for the first time in three years under Cignetti, and he was playing through injury after completing just one pass over Indiana's final five possessions -- a 21-yard hookup with tight end Brock Schott in overtime.

"I had to battle through some things this week to get out here," Hoover said. "I knew I was going to find a way to get out here and find a way to win this game for this team regardless of how I felt. There's guys on this team that are banged up every week. It's no different for me."

Indiana's not the only top-10 team with quarterback concerns right now. Ohio State lost Julian Sayin for the foreseeable future after last week's win over the Hoosiers; unbeaten UCLA is without Nico Iamaleava, and Texas Tech's on-again, off-again Will Hammond hasn't enjoyed a multi-touchdown passing effort all season.

The Hoosiers looked gun-shy in the passing game throughout the second half as they nursed a narrow lead and did everything they could to avoid giving Michigan's anemic offense short-field scoring opportunities.

Cignetti's not panicking after his team improved to 7-1 and remained very much in control of their CFP quest, but pretending all is well for the Hoosiers offensively after a couple of one-possession wins over Northwestern and Nebraska, with Minnesota and USC looming, is a problem.

"It's a great win," Cignetti said. "They come in all different shapes and sizes. Defense just kept them out of the end zone for the most part. Kept coming up with plays. Offense struggled to say the least. And yes, Josh Hoover did practice every day, but was limited a little bit, and we feel he'll get better and better every day physically.

"Who would have ever thought we'd run Josh down there for touchdowns? So the element of surprise is still alive in college football. Our defense backs the ball all the time, and came through, you know, a number of times, and it's a great win."

Indiana's offensive struggles

Hoover was handpicked by Cignetti and Indiana's offensive staff this portal cycle to be the replacement for Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza, who so often bailed the Hoosiers out of difficult situations last fall during an unbeaten run to hardware.

However, production is down offensively across all categories, and that's going to be a problem the rest of the way and potentially in the playoff for the Hoosiers against elite competition.

Scoring offense

Total offense

Rushing offense

Passing offense

Red zone TD %

2026

33.6 PPG

419.6 YPG

191.5 YPG

228.1 YPG

70.0

2025

41.6 PPG

452.0 YPG

212.8 YPG

239.1 YPG

72.7

Hoover doesn't have to be Superman for this offense to flourish, but the Hoosiers have to find ways to continue getting Charlie Becker and portal acquisition Nick Marsh the football. Becker hasn't dropped a pass in his college career, and Marsh is averaging 17.9 yards per catch this season with seven scores.

Indiana's essentially using a two-wideout system, given the production, so it leans on Hoover to do what's asked of him as a passer. At some point in the coming weeks, the Hoosiers' season will hinge on executing with Hoover and for Cignetti, that might be a panic-inducing thought after Saturday's outing revealed a slight lack of trust.

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