Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud should be looking over their shoulders at Hendon Hooker

It is still early, but Hendon Hooker is playing up to Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud’s Heisman Trophy-contending levels at the quarterback position for the surging Tennessee Volunteers.

As long at Tennessee keeps winning games, Volunteers quarterback Hendon Hooker has every reason to believe he will be invited to the Heisman Trophy ceremony with the likes of Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud.

Although Young’s Alabama Crimson Tide face Hooker’s Vols next week for the Third Saturday in October, it is so hard to repeat in the Heisman race. New is always better, and Young was last year’s shining star. While Stroud and his Ohio State Buckeyes look strong over in Big Ten country, you cannot deny what Hooker is doing in his second season playing for Josh Heupel at Tennessee.

I mean, look at this! Look at how nice this is! Big plays like this make the Vols such a great watch.

Tennessee football: Hendon Hooker has forced himself into Heisman Trophy race

While No. 8 Tennessee is cleaning No. 25 LSU’s clock in Death Valley in Week 6, Rocky Top still has a brutal gauntlet to run in SEC play the rest of the way. As stated before, they host No. 1 Alabama next week. Although they can catch a breather on Oct. 22 when they host UT-Martin, division rival No. 13 Kentucky comes to town on Oct. 29. Then, it is at No. 2 Georgia on Nov. 5…

Although the Vols conquered then-No. 20 Florida two weeks ago, the Gators are maybe the fourth-best team in the SEC East this season. While getting a win over a major rival is huge for Heupel, Hooker and company, until the Vols can beat Alabama and Georgia with any regularity, they are not going to be heading to Atlanta any time soon. The good news is Hooker can change all that.

Alabama and Georgia are still undefeated, but teams like Arkansas, Kent State, Missouri and Texas have given these two southeastern juggernauts problems in the early part of the season. At some point, one of them is going to slip up, possibly before they meet each other in Atlanta with an SEC Championship on the line. Meanwhile, Hooker and Tennessee need to keep on doing their thing.

If Tennessee goes 10-2 and Hooker plays well vs. Alabama and Georgia, he is going to New York.

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