Volunteer Country

Hooker's Draft Status Becoming Increasingly Clear

Tennessee Volunteers quarterback Hendon Hooker has been trending up since the Reese's Senior Bowl. Is it becoming safe to pencil him into the first-round?

Brady Penn

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The draft buzz around Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker has become increasingly loud over the past couple of months, and his stock has seemingly continued to rise. Drowning out the criticisms of his age, system, or whatever else is the sound of Hooker's name becoming more and more frequently mentioned when it comes to first-round quarterbacks.

While guys like CJ Stroud and Bryce Young are consensus first-round picks, it is not quite as clear when it comes to Hendon Hooker. At 25 years old, Hooker would be the oldest first-round quarterback selected since Brandon Weeden. He is coming off of a torn ACL from a late November game against South Carolina.

However, ever since the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, Hendon's name has been brought up more and more. Even without participating in the football workouts at the combine and Tennessee's Pro Day, Hooker has wowed scouts with his mind. Former NFL general manager Mike Tannenbaum even had Hooker going top five in his mock draft a couple of weeks ago. 

Multiple other NFL scouts reportedly do not believe that Hooker will go anywhere past the No. 29 slot, which belongs to the New Orleans Saints, a team that is consistently linked to Hendon. The Washington Commanders also supposedly "really like" the former Vols signal caller. With the draft rapidly approaching, just over a week away, the anticipation grows stronger than ever. It is becoming increasingly clear that Hooker will probably hear his name called in the first round on the night of April 27 in Kansas City.

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Brady Penn
BRADY PENN

Brady Penn is a writer who has spent multiple years covering sports for multiple publications. Starting with "The Clarion", Brevard College's school publication, where he won an award for Sportswriting from the North Carolina Collegiate Media Association. Brady continues his work with The Clarion, as well as writing for SI's Volunteer Country and writing Braves pieces for SportsTalkATL.com. Brady is a rising Senior at Brevard, where he plays Football and does Play-by-Play broadcasting for BC Baseball, Men's/Women's Basketball and Softball.

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