The 2026 NFL Draft boasts a talented and anticipated quarterback class with names like Cade Klubnik, Fernando Mendoza, LaNorris Sellers, Garrett Nussmeier, and Drew Allar leading most of the conversations surrounding the position group.

 

 

However, a name that wasn’t on my watchlist when I wrote about my top-five quarterbacks earlier in the summer that has really impressed me is TCU signal caller Josh Hoover. Today, we’ll be diving into Hoover’s scouting report and why I’m higher on him than most.

 

Background

Recruiting profile

 

Hoover was a member of the 2022 recruiting class and played high school football for Rockwall-Heath High School in Rockwall, TX. Per 247Sports’ composite rankings, he was the 709th overall prospect and the 41st overall quarterback, while being the 103rd-ranked player in Texas.

 

Statistical Profile

 

Hoover comes into this season as a redshirt junior and has started 19 straight games for the Horned Frogs, completing 65% of his passes for 6,155 yards and 42 touchdowns with 20 interceptions in his career. He took a massive step from 2023 to 2024, and I’m projecting more growth from him in 2025. Now, let’s dive into his scouting report!

 

Scouting Report

Release/Mechanics

 

Hoover has one of the quickest and smoothest releases in this 2026 crop of quarterbacks. He has no wasted motion or elongation; it’s quick, compact, and effective.

 

His footwork is solid and coordinated all around. A few of the higher-perceived quarterbacks in this class are a complete mess in the lower half in terms of mechanics. Hoover is not one of those.

 

 

However, Hoover does occasionally fall into the habit of throwing off his back foot under pressure. He needs to be more consistent in standing tall in the pocket in the face of pressure so he doesn’t lose velocity on his passes.

 

Arm Talent

 

Hoover absolutely has an NFL-level arm. He gets solid velocity when he drives the ball on a rope and can also loft it deep down the field. I don’t think his arm is anything crazy, but he can make every throw that will be asked of him at the next level.

 

This is apparent on his throws down the field, especially on throws outside the hashes. There are multiple examples on his tape where he’s able to drive the ball 20+ yards downfield on a rope from the opposite hash with little to no effort.

 

I also believe Hoover is one of the better touch throwers in this class. He understands that not every throw has to be a fastball and finds the open pockets in between defenders effectively.

 

Accuracy

 

Hoover’s accuracy may be his biggest knock as a prospect. It’s not necessarily bad, but it can be very inconsistent at times. For example, the Baylor tape was nearly perfect in terms of accuracy, but the Oklahoma State game was spotty at times.

 

Some of his most accurate throws were actually on the run, rather surprisingly. Honestly, the most accurate portion of his game was down the field. If he can hone in the short game with just more consistent placement, he could be even more deadly.

 

 

Processing/Decision-Making

 

Hoover’s processing was my favorite part of his game. As is typical of a Big 12 team, TCU runs a very spread-out offense with a lot of air raid concepts. Concepts from these offenses have been integrating themselves into NFL schemes more and more, but I was shocked at how many NFL-level route trees TCU ran.

 

Processing isn’t just postsnap, it’s also presnap. Hoover was efficient in this category, so let’s dive into this play from his Oklahoma State tape.

 

 

Here, TCU is running a switch concept to the field side (which is the left side of the offense here). Switch concepts are great against man coverage, especially to the field side, because it gives receivers more space to operate.

 

Here, Hoover recognizes that Oklahoma State is running cover one (man coverage across with a safety playing deep-middle) with one high safety and a five-man blitz, so he knows the switch concept to the field side is where he wants to target, as opposed to the backside drive concept. The outside X receiver does a great job of firing off the ball and getting in the way of the slot corner. This creates plenty of space for the slot receiver to clear towards the sideline, and Hoover delivers a perfect ball in stride for a big gain.

 

As for postsnap processing, let’s jump to this play from Hoover’s tape against Baylor.

 

 

This seems to be some variation of a levels-smash concept, with a variation of smash to the two receiver side and a variation of a levels concept to the trips side.

 

 

Baylor shows a two-high alignment with a 4-man front, so Hoover is likely thinking cover two in this scenario. However, the Baylor EDGE drops into a zone at the snap, revealing a three-man rush with an eight-man coverage, specifically cover six (cover four principles on one side of the defense, cover two principles on the other side).

 

Hoover looks first towards the smash concept to make sure he holds that half-field safety with his eyes. Thankfully, with the three-man rush, Hoover has plenty of time, so he then flips his hips to the middle of the field.

 

Because of the corner route holding the safety, the inside slot’s post is wide open. Hoover fires a dart right over the linebacker for a big gain that puts TCU inside the 10-yard line.

 

Like a stereotypical Big 12 quarterback, the decision-making could be reeled in. There are times when he trusts his arm a little too much, but for the most part, he makes the correct read.

 

Pocket-Presence/Pressure-Management

 

Hoover’s feel for the pocket is another area he could improve. While his pressure-to-sack rate was strong at 11.8% last season, he tends to drift left in the pocket. He sometimes shows brilliance by sidestepping the rush, but needs more trust in his offensive line and should avoid leaving the pocket too quickly.

 

I do think he manages pressure well. He has a good understanding of pressures and blitz packages that may be coming and knows that he’ll have to get the ball out quickly in those scenarios.

 

Mobility/Improvisation

 

TCU doesn’t really use Hoover as a runner. He has negative rushing yards in his career, but of course, that takes sacks into account, which tanks his rushing production on the surface since college football counts sacks against a quarterback’s rushing yards.

 

Hoover is a pretty good athlete, though. He’s able to make people miss from the pocket and has moments of wizardry as an improviser. TCU may have to tap into his legs more this season, but we’ll just have to wait and see.

 

 

Final Thoughts

 

Overall, I’m very high on Hoover compared to others. He’s my QB5 and my 37th overall player. For reference, he’s QB15 and the 218th overall player on the consensus big board. He’s losing a couple of his productive weapons in receivers Jack Bech and Savion Williams, but TCU still has some solid weapons for Hoover to throw to.

 

I hope you enjoyed my scouting report. I’m really excited to watch Hoover in 2025 and see where TCU's quarterback lands in the 2026 NFL Draft.