Numerous college football coaches spoke to ESPN recently about the top quarterbacks in the nation and a couple of those coaches expressed some doubt that Tennessee Vols quarterback Hendon Hooker is the real deal.

Two SEC coaches — one of them a coordinator — suggested that Hooker is nothing more than a "system quarterback".

From ESPN:

Hooker had an impressive first season under coach Josh Heupel, but coaches also apply the system tag to him. Hooker, who was solid but never quite broke through at Virginia Tech, tossed 31 touchdown passes and only three interceptions last fall, while completing 68.2% of his attempts.

"He wasn't very good at Virginia Tech, and yet he's really good [at Tennessee]," an SEC coach said. "So it makes you wonder if it is a system thing."

An SEC coordinator added: "That offense is really creative and really simple, in a unique way. It makes it very quarterback friendly. So he gets the benefit of having a lot of catch-and-throws that go for a lot of yards."

It's easy to throw shade when you remain anonymous, but I'd be interested to know if either of those SEC coaches actually played against Hooker and the Vols last season.

They might have a different opinion if they did.

As far as Hooker being a "system quarterback", that's an easy/lazy conclusion to reach by just looking at the stats. But stats don't fully explain what happens on the field.

One of the reasons Hooker is playing better at Tennessee than he did at Virginia Tech is because he has a different approach to being a quarterback. He's playing the game with more of a "fun attitude" which is a direct result of the Vols' coaching staff.

I love this from @CoachHalzle. Work hard always. Be relentless. But have some fun doing it. pic.twitter.com/haIJaLtr8L

— zach ragan (@zachTNT) August 3, 2022

Tennessee's staff recognized why Hooker wasn't playing well and they fixed it. That has nothing to do with the system. If Hooker wouldn't have changed his approach, he probably doesn't have the same success last season.

Something else these SEC coaches are ignoring is that regardless of how great a play call is, Hooker still has to execute. Before Hooker took over as Tennessee's starter last season, we saw Joe Milton struggle to execute what Heupel wanted.

Despite what opposing SEC coaches would have you believe, this isn't an offense where you can just insert a quarterback and they'll put up insane numbers. At the end of the day, it's still on the quarterback to make good decisions, execute great throws, and be the team's primary leader.

Hooker, to his credit, does all of those things.

Featured image via Jordan Prather-USA TODAY Sports