College football note: Hooker 1; Levis 0 … For those that didn’t see it, or read about later, Saturday’s SEC showdown between Kentucky and Tennessee featuring arguably the 3rd and 4th ranked QB prospects for the 2023 draft, ended up being a one-sided with the resurgent Vols rolling to an easy 44-6 win. And the QB dual between the Vols’ Hendon Hooker and Will Levis of the Wildcats wasn’t much closer. Hooker, for example, was hot completing 19 of 25 passes for 245 yards and 3 scores, while Levis was 16 of 27, but for only a measly 98 yards along with three picks. Of course, pro scouts realize football is a team game and will factor in the fact that the Hooker’s Tennessee simply overwhelmed Kentucky across the board and, as such, likely won’t hurt Levis’ grade all that much. Needless to say, it also isn’t going to hurt Hooker’s as he appears to be THE hot QB in this year’s draft class at this time, although he still seems to be a tad behind Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud and Bryce Young of Alabama, both of whom remain just a bit more polished. And Hooker will face a bigger test this coming Saturday when the 3rd ranked Vols play at #1 ranked Georgia and its great defense. Hooker’s assignment could be a little easier if UGA OLB Nolan Smith, a top 15 prospect for the upcoming draft, is unable to play after injuring his shoulder in last weekend’s win over Florida. Smith is currently listed as doubtful, but it does not appear that the injury is as serious as was first thought when it looked like he could very well have dislocated his shoulder. That’s the good news for Hooker and the Vols. The bad is that star Bulldogs’ DT Jalen Carter, a potential top 5 pick this coming April, returned to full-time duty against the Gators after missing a couple of games with a sprained knee. And speaking of Florida, the Gators announced today that ER Brenton Cox, a possible second day pick this coming spring, has been dismissed from the team for what sounds like a series of misteps that culminated when he punched a Georgia player who had just scored in the loss to the Bulldogs on Saturday. At the same time, Syracuse has confirmed that star junior CB Garrett Williams, another solid second-day candidate for the upcoming draft, will miss the rest of the year with a torn ACL. It will be interesting to see if Williams opts to enter the draft anyway or return to school. Stay tuned.
