Josh Hoover Has Indiana's Offense Humming — And Nebraska Is About To Find Out

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There was a time when Indiana quarterback Josh Hoover was still trying to prove he belonged in the conversation.

That time is over.

After five games, Hoover has become one of the biggest reasons the Hoosiers are undefeated, and Saturday night in Piscataway provided another example of just how comfortable he has become running Curt Cignetti’s offense.

Indiana dismantled Rutgers 47-15 in its first road game of the season, and while the Hoosiers were excellent in virtually every phase, Hoover once again looked like the steady hand behind an offense that is quickly becoming one of the most dangerous in the Big Ten.

Hoover completed 20 of his 27 passes for 251 yards and four touchdowns without throwing an interception. That's a 74.1% completion rate, 9.3 yards per attempt and an 87.2 quarterback rating on the night.

More importantly, it never felt like Hoover was forcing the issue.

He took what Rutgers gave him, consistently found Indiana's playmakers and made enough big throws to keep the Scarlet Knights' defense from ever settling in. The result was an offense that finished with 593 total yards, including 329 on the ground and 264 through the air.

That's balance.

And that's exactly what makes Hoover so difficult to defend.

Rutgers couldn't simply sell out to stop Indiana's running game because Hoover has shown he can punish defenses through the air. At the same time, if defenses sit back a bit, running backs Turbo Richard and Lee Beebe Jr. will make them pay dearly.

Richard was spectacular on the ground Saturday, ripping off 204 yards and a touchdown on just 13 carries. Beebe added 122 yards and another score on 18 carries.

That kind of rushing production makes life considerably easier for a quarterback, but Hoover deserves plenty of credit for capitalizing on it.

He also has no shortage of weapons in the passing game.

Nick Marsh caught seven passes for 120 yards and a touchdown, while Charlie Becker has arguably become Hoover's most productive weapon, hauling in eight passes for 107 yards and two touchdowns. Davion Chandler added another touchdown reception.

That's four touchdown passes distributed among three different receivers.

It is becoming increasingly difficult to find a weakness in what Hoover is doing.

And perhaps the most encouraging part for Indiana is that this doesn't look like a quarterback playing above his level for a couple of weeks. Hoover has developed into the type of quarterback Cignetti can trust to make the right decision over and over again.

The next test, however, is significantly more difficult.

Indiana heads to Nebraska this weekend to face an undefeated Cornhuskers team in Lincoln. The environment will be different. The stakes will be higher. And Nebraska will present Hoover with a defense capable of making him work for every possession.

That's exactly why Saturday's performance matters.

Indiana doesn't need Hoover to throw for 400 yards every week. It doesn't need him to be spectacular on every possession. What the Hoosiers need is what they got against Rutgers: efficiency, decisiveness, accuracy and the ability to capitalize when opportunities present themselves.

Hoover did all of that.

Now comes the first major road challenge of Big Ten play. If he continues playing at this level, Indiana won't just be undefeated heading into Nebraska. The Hoosiers will have a quarterback who looks increasingly ready for whatever comes next.

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