Tennessee football: Outlet predicts Hendon Hooker will break these two records

After last year’s breakout campaign, Tennessee football quarterback Hendon Hooker enters 2022 with a chance to etch his name into UT history. Quarterbacks often do that for the Vols by having specific memorable seasons, whether it’s Peyton Manning in 1997 or Josh Dobbs in 2016.

Throwing for 31 touchdowns and just three interceptions last year, Hooker may have already had a season like that, but in Josh Heupel’s system the possibilities are endless. Brad Crawford of 247Sports expects him to build on that by breaking multiple UT records this year.

In his 10 boldest predictions of the 2022 season, Crawford said Hooker would break Tennessee football’s single-season passing touchdown record and consecutive games with a touchdown pass record. Here is what he said about Hooker’s prospects.

"Entering the 2022 campaign, Hooker has thrown a touchdown pass in 12 consecutive games with the program record set at 18 (Heath Shuler, 1992-93). That mark will come to and end when the Volunteers torch UT Martin at home in October.…The second record he’ll break this season is the single-season touchdown pass mark (Peyton Manning, 36). Hooker managed 31 scoring tosses last fall including six starts with three or more."

It is true that Hooker would seem likely to break Manning’s 36 touchdowns record given what he did last year. However, he is a dual-threat quarterback, and Heupel’s system is more based on the run, so it’s also possible that he scores more touchdowns with his legs this year.

To be fair, last year, Hooker had 36 total touchdowns when you add passing and rushing. Manning had 39 total touchdowns in that regard in 1997, a record that Dobbs tied in 2016 with 27 passing touchdowns and 12 rushing touchdowns.

Hooker already broke one record last year, and that was Erik Ainge’s completion percentage mark. Ainge’s 67 percent completion rate in 2006 was the record for players who threw a minimum of 300 passes and Hooker, who threw 303 last year, completed 68 percent.

With just three picks, Hooker also broke Manning’s record for lowest interception percentage with a minimum of 300 passes, as he was below one percent. Given that efficiency, he could also break Jarrett Guarantano’s record for 166 consecutive passes without a pick, as he’s already at 99.

Now, these records come with a cost. Hooker was sacked a lot last year and was guilty of fumbling it a good bit. Combine that with the new era and him playing in Heupel’s system, and it’s safe to say the records held by Manning are still more impressive.

However, Tennessee football fans may still witness a historic season next year when it comes to passing the ball. Don’t be surprised if Hooker breaks the record for total yards in a single season either. Manning set that in 1997 as well, picking up 3,789.

Last year, Hooker had 3,561 total yards. Now, he doesn’t just have to catch Manning on that. Before getting there, he has to catch Dobbs, who had 3,777 total yards in 2016. Simply put, at this point, the two best seasons ever by a quarterback on Rocky Top in terms of offensive production were Manning in 1997 and Dobbs in 2016.

Although Hooker’s 2021 season is close to that, he could surpass all of them with enough production for Tennessee football in 2022. Don’t sleep on other records that may break in the process, including Cedric Tillman potentially knocking down a few receiving records.