Hendon Hooker responds to question about how Tennessee Vols' offense prepared him for the NFL
Former Tennessee Vols quarterback Hendon Hooker heard all of the criticism about UT's offense during the pre-draft process. The narrative that was sold by the media is that Tennessee's up-tempo spread offense doesn't prepare players for the NFL because the calls and formations are so different. Hooker didn't let that criticism bother him — mostly […]
Former Tennessee Vols quarterback Hendon Hooker heard all of the criticism about UT's offense during the pre-draft process.
The narrative that was sold by the media is that Tennessee's up-tempo spread offense doesn't prepare players for the NFL because the calls and formations are so different.
Hooker didn't let that criticism bother him — mostly because he felt like Tennessee prepared him for the NFL just fine.
"I think just through my pre-draft process, a lot of the combine meetings and a lot of the meetings that I had with teams and installing their plays, you know, 'we call it this, oh, we have that, we call it that', so there's just different verbiage, a different language everywhere," explained Hooker during an appearance on 104.5 The Zone's Ramon, Kayla, and Will this week. "But being able to walk into rooms with with GMs, presidents, head coach, offensive coordinator, quarterback coach, and then their support staff, and just taking over the entire meeting. And being well prepared. I think Tennessee's coaches did a great job of that. Even when I was hurt, I was still getting a couple of play calls in — a Cowboys' old playbook that one of my coaches had — any way that I can continue to build and get better. That's what I did last summer, and then this summer, I came back to Tennessee and did some work with him (UT coach) as well."
The comment that stands out to me from Hooker is the note about the old Cowboys playbook. That shows that Tennessee's coaches are going the extra mile to make sure their players are prepared for the NFL. That shows that while the terminology and formations might be different in Tennessee's offense, UT's coaches still understand what it takes to be successful in the NFL. And they want to make sure their players are equipped with that knowledge.
Young quarterbacks considering Tennessee shouldn't worry too much about the narrative surrounding the Vols' offense — Hooker's comments are proof that UT can prepare quarterbacks for the next level.
College football expert makes strong statement about Tennessee vs Georgia
A notable college football expert made a strong statement about the Tennessee Vols vs the Georgia Bulldogs
Featured image via Jamar Coach/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK
