Indiana’s QB crisis deepens: Is Hoover’s injury forcing Cignetti’s hand?

Indiana football has a quarterback problem.

And it may be considerably bigger than head coach Curt Cignetti wants the public to believe.

The question surrounding the No. 4 Hoosiers is no longer whether Josh Hoover can tolerate playing with an injury.

It is whether the fifth-year quarterback can deliver the accuracy and consistency Indiana needs to compete for another national championship.

Hoover has been dealing with an injury to his throwing arm since taking a hit during Indiana’s October 17 loss to Ohio State.

The injury appeared to affect his performance against Michigan on October 24.

And the situation became impossible to ignore Saturday against Minnesota.

Cignetti replaced Hoover at halftime of Indiana’s eventual 23-16 overtime victory over the Golden Gophers.

Backup Grant Wilson took over and helped lead the Hoosiers to victory.

Wilson connected with Charlie Becker for the winning touchdown on the first play of overtime.

That performance has changed the conversation.

THE INJURY IS NOW UNDER NATIONAL SCRUTINY

Two prominent college football analysts, both former quarterbacks, have raised serious questions about Hoover’s physical condition.

FOX analyst Joel Klatt said he noticed Hoover wincing after throws during the Ohio State game.

Klatt believes the injury may involve Hoover’s throwing shoulder.

Klatt pointed to Hoover’s declining accuracy, particularly on throws over the middle.

“He’s missing high, particularly over the middle,” Klatt observed.

He suggested that the loss of accuracy can become a confidence problem as well as a physical one.

Former Florida State quarterback Danny Kanell was even more concerned.

Appearing on the Cover 3 podcast, Kanell said he believed Hoover was “hurt way worse than they’re letting on.”

Kanell also questioned Hoover’s throwing mechanics and expressed concern about the quarterback’s reaction after taking a late hit against Minnesota.

These are opinions from experienced former quarterbacks, not medical diagnoses.

Indiana has not publicly identified the precise injury or disclosed its severity.

But their observations deserve attention, particularly given what happened on the field.

THE NUMBERS TELL A STORY

Over his last three games, Hoover has completed just 46.8% of his passes for 496 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.

Against Michigan, he completed only 8 of 19 passes for 119 yards, one touchdown and an interception.

Against Minnesota, he was 8 of 19 for 119 yards before being pulled.

Those numbers are a steep drop from Hoover’s performance earlier in the season.

Before the Ohio State hit, Hoover was completing over 65% of his passes and averaging more than 280 yards per game.

The decline is sharp enough that Cignetti acknowledged it publicly.

“He get dinged up against Ohio State,” Cignetti said on his weekly radio show Wednesday night.

“It’s been a struggle and a little bit of a struggle offensively, too.”

Cignetti revealed that he had already considered making a quarterback change against Michigan the previous week.

“I have total confidence that he would come in and get the job done in the second half,” Cignetti said of Wilson.

“There wasn’t a doubt in my mind.”

Still, Cignetti didn’t offer any indication of who will start when Indiana returns to action against USC on November 14.

“Josh is on the mend,” Cignetti said.

“It’s a good time to have an off week.

He should only get better, and right now, he’s resting.”

The extra time should help Hoover physically.

But Wilson’s performance has given Indiana another option if its offensive struggles persist.

Cignetti also acknowledged that Indiana’s offense is not meeting expectations.

“Our defense the last four or five games has been really solid,” Cignetti said.

“Offensively, we’re not producing like we had the previous two years.

Our consistency is not there right now.”

Saturday’s win over Minnesota was frustrating because Indiana moved the ball effectively at times.

But the Hoosiers needed overtime to defeat both Michigan and Minnesota.