Rece Davis Expects Big Ten Program To Thrive Despite Losing 3,500-Yard Quarterback

No college football quarterback has a tougher bar to measure up to in 2026 than new Indiana QB Josh Hoover.

Hoover, of course, is replacing Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza, who led the Hoosiers to a 16-0 record, the first national championship in program history and one of the greatest stories overall in American team sports history.

Mendoza was also near-universally beloved for his endearing personality in postgame interviews and heartfelt moments with his family under the spotlight that followed him through the college football postseason.

But all of that said, Hoover was an exceptional pickup for Indiana coach Curt Cignetti as he looks to keep the standard high in Bloomington.

Rece Davis, the venerable face of ESPN's college football coverage, agrees, chiming in on the matter on the "See Ball Get Ball" podcast with David Pollack, who asked him if Indiana could keep it going in 2026 or was due to fall off at all.

"I mean, they're going to have to fall off a little bit because they were darn near perfect this year," Davis said.

"They are here to stay, I think. Now, at that level? Probably not. You've got to hit on the quarterback again, and they've got a great track record of doing that. And I think Josh Hoover is really talented and is the right kind of guy to fit well into that system and be developed by those guys. ... I think they will continue to be a force in the Big Ten."

Hoover is as experienced and productive as any quarterback returning to college football in 2026.

He was a three-year starter at TCU, and in his time with the Horned Frogs, he completed 65.2% of his passes for 9,629 yards, 71 touchdowns and 33 interceptions, plus 8 rushing TDs.

Hoover's best season at TCU came in 2024 when he passed for 3,949 yards, 27 TDs and 11 INTs, plus 4 rushing TDs, but he was good again in 2025 as well with a 3,472-29-13 line.

He has a big arm and isn't afraid to take aggressive shots down the field, which has kept his interception numbers a bit inflated. It will be interesting to see if his play style changes at all at Indiana, where Mendoza's best traits were his accuracy and efficiency.

In 16 games, Mendoza passed for 3,535 yards, 41 TDs and 6 INTs while completing 72% of his passes -- third-best at the FBS level -- and adding 7 rushing TDs. He notably threw for more TDs (8) than incompletions (5) in Indiana's first two playoff wins over Alabama and Oregon.

Hoover will be the third different starting QB in three years for Cignetti at Indiana, as the Hoosiers have brought in veteran transfers each of those seasons. And both Kurtis Rourke, a transfer from Ohio who completed 69.4% of his passes for 3,042 yards, 29 TDs and 5 INTs in 12 games in 2024, and Mendoza, who transferred in from Cal, saw a significant boost in their efficiency and overall production with the Hoosiers.

Hoover could well find himself right in the thick of the Heisman Trophy race himself in 2026, even if Mendoza has set the bar so incredibly high.