2023 NFL Draft QB Stock Watch: Hendon Hooker rises after leading Vols to big win over Will Levis, Kentucky
Sizing up the draft stock of some of college football's top quarterbacks

The college football season is an opportunity for NFL Draft prospects to leave an impression on talent evaluators, but the window is quickly closing as November arrives. Each of the coming weeks is increasingly important as opportunities dwindle. Some of college football's best programs are led by NFL-caliber quarterback talent and they are broken down below, as we size up the draft stock for each:
Hendon Hooker, Tennessee: Stock Up
Stats: (44-6 win over No. 19 Kentucky): 19-of-25 passes completed, 245 yards, 3 TD; 10 carries, 23 yards, 1 TD
A lot of credit probably belongs to Tennessee's offensive design, but Hooker is an efficient player with supreme control. The Volunteers do a great job of putting defenses in uncomfortable positions just to see how they react. On the first two plays of the game, the Volunteers ran the same play that led to a missed tackle and consequently a touchdown on the first play last season against the Wildcats. Kentucky did a much better job of tackling in space but Tennessee found a new situation to exploit -- inexperienced safety play.
On the first of two Jalin Hyatt touchdowns, Kentucky had a linebacker in the flat with safety help over the top. The young safety bit down on an in-breaking pattern leaving Hyatt wide open for his 13th touchdown reception of the season:
Hendon Hooker to Jalin Hyatt may just be the top connection in CFB right now🔥
— PFF College (@PFF_College) October 29, 2022
pic.twitter.com/1Ec8p5XUdR
Hooker certainly missed some throws but did a good job of moving the chains.
Max Duggan, TCU: Stock Up
Stats: (41-31 Win at West Virginia): 16-of-28 passes completed, 341 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT; 6 carries, 2 yards
CBS Sports' Garrett Podell, a proud TCU alum, cornered me in a digital Slack room and asked what Duggan had to do to be featured in this weekly article. Clearly, the answer was to lead the Horned Frogs to an undefeated 8-0 start. In all honesty, the senior from Iowa had come close to making the list a few times, but five are featured each week and three of those spots are generally earmarked for Alabama's Bryce Young, Kentucky's Will Levis and Ohio State's C.J. Stroud.
Duggan has average size and mobility for an NFL quarterback. He displays good decision-making as evidenced by his 11:1 touchdown to interception ratio. Duggan is able to keep the ball down but his eyes can tip off defenders to get hands in the passing lanes. According to TruMedia, Duggan ranks No. 6 in quarterback passes batted down (8). Wide receiver Quentin Johnston is one of the biggest mismatches in college football and Duggan does a good job giving him opportunities in single coverage. He delivered a dime to wide receiver Taye Barber over coverage and in stride:
MAX DUGGAN 71-YARD TD PASS 🎯 pic.twitter.com/EvY1eYvdn2
— ESPN (@espn) October 29, 2022
Will Levis, Kentucky: Stock Down
Stats: (6-44 Loss at No. 3 Tennessee): 16-of-27 passes completed, 98 yards, 3 INT; 5 carries, -22 yards
It was a disappointing all around performance for Kentucky. The protection has not been particularly good for Levis this season but the predictability of offensive play-calling has not helped. On Saturday against the Volunteers, the Wildcats had 11 full offensive possessions and ran the ball on the first play on nine of them. Slants and screens are thrown in when that first play results in less than four yards. The blame does not end there, however. On the team's first possession of the second quarter, Levis threw a well-executed back shoulder throw to NFL Draft-hopeful Tayvion Robinson that would have resulted in a long gain or potentially a touchdown. Robinson dropped the pass and the drive would later end on a red-zone interception. UK was down 20-6 at that point.
Levis did some good things with the football but he threw three interceptions and probably should have had a fourth on a pre-determined pass to the flat that a Tennessee defender jumped but could not complete. There were plays he had time to reach his check down but instead he held on too long and took the sack. On another play, pressure forced him left but all of his routes were crossing the field to the right. He missed a few touch throws. Pressure came wide off the right side and the defender was able to dip around the corner and register a sack. A year ago, Levis would have sensed that pressure and took off running into the space vacated by the edge rusher. The Penn State transfer took too many unnecessary hits last season so it is understandable wanting to limit those moments. However, he is a player that craves contact and seems to thrive bouncing up from those hits.
It was a frustrating night against an SEC defense that has not inspired a lot of confidence to this point in the season.
C.J. Stroud, Ohio State: Stock Up
Stats: (44-31 Win at No. 13 Penn State): 26-of-33 passes completed, 354 yards, 1 TD; 6 carries, 5 yards
The Nittany Lions tightly contested Saturday's game until a fumble in the fourth quarter allowed the Buckeyes to pull away. There was an unfair early narrative that Stroud was not fulfilling his responsibilities as a top quarterback prospect. His feel for pressure in the pocket allows him to step up and throw with touch and accuracy to all three levels of the field. Five of his seven incompletions took place in the first half.
Stroud is accustomed to making at least one throw into coverage each game. His lone questionable throw was in double coverage down the right boundary. It was intercepted but the defensive back was not able to get his feet down in-bounds. He has shown that he is more than willing to take the checkdown when the defense gives it to him.
Cameron Ward, Washington State: Stock Stagnant
Stats: (21-17 Loss at No. 14 Utah): 27-of-31 passes completed, 222 yards, 1 TD; 12 carries, 28 yards, 1 TD
Ward is elusive and that leads to extended plays for the Cougars. He checks all of the boxes in terms of size, arm strength and mobility but his footwork, specifically resetting, is still a work in progress. The Incarnate Word transfer does a good job moving in the pocket but has to do a better job of feeling the pressure. Washington State's offense is designed to work the field horizontally and force the defense to make plays in space. To this point in the season, he is averaging 6.76 air yards per attempts, which ranks No. 111 among 123 qualified quarterbacks, according to TruMedia.
















