orangeblooded16
Vol Fan Enthusiast
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I'm sitting here thinking about how good Hendon Hooker was in 2022 and how fun that team was to watch. So just as a little reminder of how good Hooker was, I want to compare Hooker's senior season with the senior seasons of 2 other Tennessee greats: Peyton Manning and Casey Clausen.
Below are Hooker's 2022 stats with their ranking in the SEC in bold:
Comp Percentage: 69.6% (1)
Passing Yards: 3,135 (4)
Passing Yards Per Attempt: 9.5 (1 in SEC and NCAA)
Adjusted Passing Yards Per Attempt: 10.9 (1 in SEC and NCAA)
Passing TDs: 27 (3)
INTs: 3 (1 in SEC and NCAA, not counting the Air Force QB)
Passing Efficiency Rating: 175.5 (1)
Total Yards: 3,565 (5)
Total TD Responsible For: 32 (5)
Total Yards Per Play: 8.2 (2)
Keep in mind, this was in just 11 games against 6 AP Top 25 teams. If he had played 13, 14, or even 15 games, his total yardage numbers would have been through the roof. Using his yards per game number, he would've totaled almost 4,000 passing yards had he had played 14 games. His efficiency is something Tennessee has never seen before; and his career efficiency rating is 10th all time in college football, behind some legends of the game. Yes, there is the argument that he benefited from the beautiful scheme of Josh Heupel's offense, but we've seen it takes a special QB to make that offense flourish if the uber talented Joe Milton couldn't do it.
Now here are Peyton's stats from his 1997 Heisman season (Bump Charles Woodson) with their ranking in the SEC in bold:
Comp Percentage: 60.2 (5)
Passing Yards: 3,819 (2)
Passing Yards Per Attempt: 8 (3)
Adjusted Passing Yards Per Attempt: 8.5 (2)
Passing TDs: 36 (2)
INTs: 11 (6)
Passing Efficiency Rating: 147.7 (2)
Total Yards: 3,789 (1 in SEC and 2 in NCAA)
Total TD Responsible For: 39 (2)
Total Yards Per Play: 7.2 (1)
Peyton's stats came in just 12 games against 5 AP Top 25 opponents. All of his numbers are extremely impressive, but it puts in perspective even more just how good Hooker's 2022 season was. I understand Peyton's offense wasn't the up-tempo style designed to get receivers open looks generating multiple big time plays per game meaning his yards per attempt numbers would be less than Hooker, but that doesn't take away the fact that Peyton still put up big time stats. Peyton also put up these numbers with Jamal Lewis rushing for 1300 yards, as neither of the other 2 QBs had a RB with more than 900 yards on the ground.
Finally, here are Casey Clausen's stats from his 2003 season with their ranking in the SEC in bold:
Comp Percentage: 56.6% (9)
Passing Yards: 2,968 (3)
Passing Yards Per Attempt: 7.2 (7)
Adjusted Passing Yards Per Attempt: 7.5 (4)
Passing TDs: 27 (3)
INTs: 9 (8)
Passing Efficiency Rating: 134.3 (4)
Total Yards: 2,923 (3)
Total TD Responsible For: 29 (2)
Casey's season is definitely 3rd with these 3, but it is still an impressive season. In 13 games against 3 AP Top 25 opponents, Clausen led Tennessee to a 10-3 season. His WR room was highlighted by Mark Jones, who is a solid WR but isn't the Marcus Nash or Jalin Hyatt that the other 2 QBs had, which helps us appreciate Clausen's season a little more. There's an argument to be made that his 2001 season was better, but I wanted to stick with the senior season of the 3 QBs in discussion here.
So in conclusion, Hooker's 2022 season is probably the best QB season in UT history, and I think without the injury against those dumb Gamecocks it would undoubtedly be the best season of all time. The talent he faced was far and away better than the other 2, and he also took the helm at Tennessee in a time where they weren't a national championship frontrunner and he brought them to a #1 ranking, something the other 2 never did (yes this is the CFP rankings but still, y'all know where I'm coming from). He also broke the streak against Bama and beat Florida, which makes the season even more sweeter. It makes you appreciate how good he was even more when another QB who is far more talented took the reins last season and didn't come close to replicating his success, which leads me to believe it's more than Heupel's system. His efficiency numbers speak for themselves. All 3 of these guys are Tennessee legends and each did their own thing to write their names into Vol history, but there's just something extra special about Hendon Hooker's 2022 season.
Below are Hooker's 2022 stats with their ranking in the SEC in bold:
Comp Percentage: 69.6% (1)
Passing Yards: 3,135 (4)
Passing Yards Per Attempt: 9.5 (1 in SEC and NCAA)
Adjusted Passing Yards Per Attempt: 10.9 (1 in SEC and NCAA)
Passing TDs: 27 (3)
INTs: 3 (1 in SEC and NCAA, not counting the Air Force QB)
Passing Efficiency Rating: 175.5 (1)
Total Yards: 3,565 (5)
Total TD Responsible For: 32 (5)
Total Yards Per Play: 8.2 (2)
Keep in mind, this was in just 11 games against 6 AP Top 25 teams. If he had played 13, 14, or even 15 games, his total yardage numbers would have been through the roof. Using his yards per game number, he would've totaled almost 4,000 passing yards had he had played 14 games. His efficiency is something Tennessee has never seen before; and his career efficiency rating is 10th all time in college football, behind some legends of the game. Yes, there is the argument that he benefited from the beautiful scheme of Josh Heupel's offense, but we've seen it takes a special QB to make that offense flourish if the uber talented Joe Milton couldn't do it.
Now here are Peyton's stats from his 1997 Heisman season (Bump Charles Woodson) with their ranking in the SEC in bold:
Comp Percentage: 60.2 (5)
Passing Yards: 3,819 (2)
Passing Yards Per Attempt: 8 (3)
Adjusted Passing Yards Per Attempt: 8.5 (2)
Passing TDs: 36 (2)
INTs: 11 (6)
Passing Efficiency Rating: 147.7 (2)
Total Yards: 3,789 (1 in SEC and 2 in NCAA)
Total TD Responsible For: 39 (2)
Total Yards Per Play: 7.2 (1)
Peyton's stats came in just 12 games against 5 AP Top 25 opponents. All of his numbers are extremely impressive, but it puts in perspective even more just how good Hooker's 2022 season was. I understand Peyton's offense wasn't the up-tempo style designed to get receivers open looks generating multiple big time plays per game meaning his yards per attempt numbers would be less than Hooker, but that doesn't take away the fact that Peyton still put up big time stats. Peyton also put up these numbers with Jamal Lewis rushing for 1300 yards, as neither of the other 2 QBs had a RB with more than 900 yards on the ground.
Finally, here are Casey Clausen's stats from his 2003 season with their ranking in the SEC in bold:
Comp Percentage: 56.6% (9)
Passing Yards: 2,968 (3)
Passing Yards Per Attempt: 7.2 (7)
Adjusted Passing Yards Per Attempt: 7.5 (4)
Passing TDs: 27 (3)
INTs: 9 (8)
Passing Efficiency Rating: 134.3 (4)
Total Yards: 2,923 (3)
Total TD Responsible For: 29 (2)
Casey's season is definitely 3rd with these 3, but it is still an impressive season. In 13 games against 3 AP Top 25 opponents, Clausen led Tennessee to a 10-3 season. His WR room was highlighted by Mark Jones, who is a solid WR but isn't the Marcus Nash or Jalin Hyatt that the other 2 QBs had, which helps us appreciate Clausen's season a little more. There's an argument to be made that his 2001 season was better, but I wanted to stick with the senior season of the 3 QBs in discussion here.
So in conclusion, Hooker's 2022 season is probably the best QB season in UT history, and I think without the injury against those dumb Gamecocks it would undoubtedly be the best season of all time. The talent he faced was far and away better than the other 2, and he also took the helm at Tennessee in a time where they weren't a national championship frontrunner and he brought them to a #1 ranking, something the other 2 never did (yes this is the CFP rankings but still, y'all know where I'm coming from). He also broke the streak against Bama and beat Florida, which makes the season even more sweeter. It makes you appreciate how good he was even more when another QB who is far more talented took the reins last season and didn't come close to replicating his success, which leads me to believe it's more than Heupel's system. His efficiency numbers speak for themselves. All 3 of these guys are Tennessee legends and each did their own thing to write their names into Vol history, but there's just something extra special about Hendon Hooker's 2022 season.