Why TCU's Week 0 Showing Made Me More Confident in Josh Hoover at Indiana

If you drank every time you heard the broadcast crew share one of Sonny Dykes' internal digs at last year's TCU offense while watching the Horned Frogs lay an egg vs. UNC in Ireland, well, let's just say that I hope you can hold your Guinness.

Why TCU's Week 0 Showing Increased My Confidence in Josh Hoover

It was painfully obvious during TCU's Week 0 matchup that Sonny Dykes was determined to win the breakup with his former offensive coordinator Kendal Briles, as well as his former 3-year starting quarterback and new Indiana QB1, Josh Hoover. Cutting down on turnovers and running the ball more effectively

But Dykes didn't win anything in Dublin. All he did was watch his new-look offense get shut out in the final three quarters of a 15-10 loss to a UNC team who didn't even have defensive coordinator Stephen Belichick available.

Consider that all the more reason why Hoover is going to thrive even more with his new surroundings at Indiana.

Dykes making not-so-subtle references to Hoover's turnovers was nothing new ... but it was noteworthy how it played out

If you recall, this even more direct jab at Hoover made the rounds earlier in the offseason.

NEW: TCU Head Coach Sonny Dykes takes a SHOT at QB Josh Hoover, who left for Indiana…

“Josh started 31 games here as a quarterback, and (HE) turned the ball over 42 times.” 🤯 pic.twitter.com/wHFnv4gojK
— College Transfer Portal (@CollegeFBPortal) March 25, 2026

That eyebrow-raising comment led to a response from Curt Cignetti, who addressed those turnover issues head on.

Indiana QB Josh Hoover caught some flack from TCU coach Sonny Dykes for his turnovers.

Curt Cignetti had Hoover's back this afternoon:

"When Josh got here, he met his two new best friends: Great defense and a really good run game.

"And he was never the same after that." #iufb pic.twitter.com/ERgpPUkKJ7
— Jared Kelly (@Jared_Kelly7) April 2, 2026

Yep. That's exactly right.

Dykes even conceded that Cignetti was right in his assessment of those turnover issues. The TCU coach admitted in July that "when you don't have to score 50 points to win, it's a lot easier" (via Jared Kelly).

Hoover, of course, wouldn't have needed to put up half a hundred to beat UNC. He just would've needed a second touchdown, which TCU couldn't muster in the final 52 minutes against a UNC defense that Hoover and the Horned Frogs tagged for 48 points in last year's opener.

Ah, but what about the turnovers? To Dykes' credit, TCU only had one turnover in the sloppy, Week 0 mess that his new offense took part in. Also of note, it also averaged just four yards per play, which was the program's least efficient showing since it got smacked 65-7 by Georgia in the national championship at the end of 2022.

You know, the pre-Hoover era.

Say what you want about Hoover, but he made the right read

Dykes hammering the turnover point to the Week 0 broadcast crew and seemingly everyone with a microphone made it fair to wonder if he forgot that his program finished in the top 1/3 in FBS in scoring offense each of the three seasons that Hoover started.

He wouldn't be the first (or last person) who was blinded with rage while trying to win the breakup. It's even harder to envision a world in which Dykes can do just that.

Dykes already admitted that Hoover's life at IU will be made easier by his more favorable surroundings like an elite defense (Cignetti's earlier point also was a not-so-subtle dig at TCU having the nation's No. 100 rushing attack in 2025).

What Dykes failed to mention was that his life is going to get easier by virtue of better coaching. That's a fair thing to say after each of Cignetti's first two IU quarterbacks transferred in and finished in the top 10 in the Heisman Trophy voting. Hence, why nobody should be surprised if Hoover follows suit.

Nobody would be saying that if Hoover had stayed at TCU. He opted to take his reported 7-figure value — Dykes himself admitted that TCU was "fundraising" last December in an effort to keep his QB1 in 2026 — to a place where he could not just be elevated by the surroundings; he transferred to IU to get better.

After seeing what the Horned Frogs looked like in their first regular-season game without him, that feels like a safe bet.

It's also probably a safe bet that IU fails to repeat.

Wait. Let me finish that sentence.

It's also probably a safe bet that IU fails to repeat as the FBS leader in turnover margin. Being +22 in that category is an unrealistic standard when you consider that nobody else in the 2020s decade reached that mark. Shoot, IU did things from a ball-control standpoint that we hadn't seen in decades.

Indiana did not lose a fumble over its final 1,047 offensive plays and 15 games, only losing a fumble in the first quarter of its season opener 😱

No other team since 2004 has gone more than 12+ consecutive games in a season without losing a fumble 😮 pic.twitter.com/gdlTNgYKIG
— ESPN Insights (@ESPNInsights) January 20, 2026

Want a not-so-bold prediction? Hoover will be more turnover-prone than his predecessor. Perhaps he'll have a couple of multi-turnover games in which the camera pans to an atypically irate Cignetti.

Want another not-so-bold prediction? Hoover will be less turnover-prone than he was at his previous school. Perhaps he'll have a couple of highlight-reel performances in which Dykes sheepishly admits that he lost the breakup.

Whatever the case, Hoover and anyone who tuned into TCU's Week 0 collapse should've seen something fairly obvious.

It's about to be a long year for TCU fans, especially if they choose to watch Hoover in his new digs.

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