Hendon Hooker details how Tennessee prepared ahead of Alabama win on SEC Network

The crown jewel of Tennessee Football’s tremendous 2022 campaign was their victory over rival Alabama. It was an epic. Their two quarterbacks, Hendon Hooker and Bryce Young, combined for 840 passing yards and seven touchdowns as the Volunteers outlasted the Crimson Tide 52-49 in a gluttonous offensive showdown. It was perhaps Hendon Hooker’s best performance as a Vol: 385 yards and five touchdowns along with an additional 56 rush yards, all in the best win in recent Tennessee football history.

Now, No. 5 in the orange and white is preparing for the NFL Draft, where he’s heating up as a prospect after a gaudy statistical year in 2022 prior to his ACL tear. Since he can’t participate in pro days or the combine or any kind of workout while he recovers, Hooker’s only contributions to the draft process have been interviews. His latest came with SEC Network analyst Paul Finebaum, who centered their conversation around that incredible Alabama win.

Here was Hooker when Finebaum asked how Tennessee pulled off the Herculean effort vs. the Tide:

“Yeah, just speaking on the football aspect of things, that was definitely a product of preparation and a product of the work that I put in and the work my teammates have put in. From being in those situations during practice and calling those same plays that we would call in scrimmages during practice to being in that game setting and having those plays being called and being able to execute, as we do on a daily basis. Definitely just a product of the work we did. And from the jump we just wanted to come out and make a statement that we were one of the best programs in college football.”

After that thoughtful answer from Hooker, Finebaum then asked how he is able to stay calm before games and not come out rattled. Surprisingly, Hendon Hooker pointed to one NBA star’s ritual as an influence on his own.

“Honestly, you know, I saw Luka Doncic, before hitting game winners he would do this bottle flip — you know, just kind of taking his mind off of the moment,” said Hooker. “And that’s kind of what I did. But me and Jo were free-styling and kind of just joking around on the sideline. Just staying loose and staying cool, calm and collected in the moment and not letting it get too big and not making too much of it. But just having fun and playing football. We believe in the work that we put in and we believe in the training that we’ve been taught.”

Tennessee certainly believed on that fateful October evening. A win that’s the feather in the cap of an amazing collegiate career for Hendon Hooker. Happy trails in the pros to the immediate UT legend.

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