Seven Tennessee players invited to NFL Scouting Combine
Seven former Tennessee football players have been invited to the NFL Scouting Combine: Quarterback Hendon Hooker, wide receiver Jalin Hyatt, wide receiver Cedric Tillman, offensive tackle Darnell Wright, edge rusher Byron Young, punter Paxton Brooks and linebacker Jeremy Banks.
There were 319 total prospects invited to the combine, which will be held in Indianapolis from February 28 through March 6.
In 11 games this season, Hooker completed 69.6 percent of his passes, throwing for 3,135 yards, 27 touchdowns and two interceptions, leading the Vols to an 8-0 start before losing at Georgia. He tore his ACL on November 19 at South Carolina.
NFL Scouting Combine: February 28-March 6, Indianapolis
Hooker in two seasons at Tennessee passed for 6,080 yards, 58 touchdowns and was intercepted just five times. He completed 68.8 percent of his 632 pass attempts with the Vols, quickly proving to be the ideal trigger man in Josh Heupel’s uptempo offense.
Wright, 6-foot-6, 335-pound senior, anchored Tennessee’s offensive line and was named a First Team All-SEC pick by the Associated Press, USA Today and SEC Coaches. He was a semifinalist for the Lombardi Award and was twice named the SEC Offensive Lineman of the Week.
Young, the 6-foot-4, 245-pound defensive lineman, recorded 83 total tackles — 42 solo, 41 assisted — with 23.5 tackles for loss and 12.5 sacks in his two-year career at Tennessee.
Tillman had a breakout redshirt junior season in 2021, catching 64 passes for 1,081 yards — fifth most in Tennessee football history — and 12 touchdowns.
Last season he was limited to just six games played due to a high-ankle sprain suffered in a 63-6 win over Akron in September at Neyland Stadium. Tillman caught 37 passes for 417 yards and three touchdowns over his final six games with the Vols.
Jalin Hyatt won Tennessee’s first Biletnikoff Award in 2022
Hyatt last season became Tennessee’s first Biletnikoff Award winner, the trophy given annually to college football’s best wide receiver.
Hyatt finished the regular season leading the country in touchdowns, with his 15 setting a new Tennessee program record. He finished with 1,267 receiving yards, only 31 yards short of matching the Tennessee record held by Robert Meachem, who had 1,298 yards in 2006.
Hyatt set a new Tennessee single-game record when he caught five touchdowns in the 52-49 win over Alabama in October, finishing the game with six catches for 207 yards.
Banks in five seasons at Tennessee recorded 219 tackles, 18.0 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks. He had three interceptions, eight passes deflected, a fumble recovery and a forced fumble.
In 11 games last season, Banks had 53 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss. He had a breakout redshirt junior season in 2021, with 128 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks, to go with one interception.
Brooks, who spent the last five years with the Vols, punted 163 times in 45 career games, averaging 42.3 yards per punt. He punted 38 times last season, averaging 39.1 yards, and averaged a career-best 44.0 yards per kick on 45 punts during the 2021 season.
