Iverson Hooks has already spent plenty of time proving he can take a hit and keep moving.
Oregon’s new transfer slot receiver arrives with a background that doesn’t look like a typical wideout resume. In high school at Pike Road in Alabama, about 20 miles from Montgomery, he played quarterback and free safety. He also fought through two knee surgeries, tearing the ACL in his right knee as a freshman and the ACL in his left knee as a junior.
Even with all that, Hooks helped lead Pike Road to a 14-0 season and the state 5A championship as a senior. Quinshon Judkins, now a Browns running back after stops at Ole Miss and Ohio State, lined up next to him.
And when Hooks returned for his first game that season, Judkins was out with a minor leg injury. Against 6A McGill-Toolen, which had won 11 games the year before, Hooks put on a show: 16 carries for 307 yards and five rushing touchdowns of 66, 85, 86, 1 and 4 yards, plus 5-of-6 passing for 219 yards and three passing scores of 58, 76 and 55 yards.
At 5-10 and 175 pounds, with 4.4 speed in the 40, Hooks was never going to stay at quarterback at the next level. UAB recruited him as a receiver, and the move made sense. The same football brain that helped him run an offense in high school now shows up in the slot, where he plays with a sharp feel for routes, coverages and timing.
His brother, Dre Reynolds, said that part of Hooks’ game was built long before the spotlight.
“We’d get him in a room and we’d study offensive formations and we’d study defensive formations," Reynolds said." He always studied safety.
He always studied quarterback. It wasn't playing outside, it wasn't playing on video games.
It was me and him in the house studying football. I knew when I played football, if you got that high IQ of the game, even with less talent, it can take you far."
"We built that up a long time ago. Throughout his little league career, leading up to middle school and high school, that’s where all the coaches bragged on Iverson. Even with him having 4.4, 4.3 speed, great athletic ability, the first thing coming out of high school coaches mouths was they couldn’t believe his football IQ.”
That feel for the game showed at UAB. Against Memphis last season, Hooks caught 11 passes for 172 yards and three touchdowns. The Blazers also highlighted the performance in a post that called it a career night.
For a smaller receiver in a physical game, Hooks has learned how to survive and produce. He finds soft spots in coverage, works the middle of the field and competes for contested catches. He also knows when to get down or step out of bounds, which helps him protect his body while still moving the chains.
There’s an obvious comparison waiting to be made with Tez Johnson. Johnson, from Pinson, Alabama, was 5-10 and 165 pounds at Oregon. Hooks is listed at 5-10 and 175, with a frame that fits a similar role and maybe a little more speed.
Hooks’ path has included another major setback, too. As a redshirt freshman at UAB, he tore the ACL in his left knee again while going out of bounds after a catch.
“I mean, I'm not afraid to say there were nights I cried myself to sleep," Hooks said. "When you’re mentally beat up, there’s going to be nights like that.
God just blessed me, like, you just go to keep faith. You might feel bad that day, but the next day you got to get up and hit it with all you got.
You never know if that’s gonna be the day that God shows you that you can really make it. You can never take a chance to let that slip away.”
It took two more years, but Hooks eventually became UAB’s leading receiver as a junior and earned his way to Oregon. That combination of quarterback experience, defensive background and repeated rehab work gives him a chance to matter in more than one way for the Ducks.
He can help as a playmaker, as depth, and as a steady presence in a receiver room that includes Evan Stewart and Dakorien Moore, both of whom are also working back from injuries.
He could also become especially useful for Dante Moore. One of Moore’s biggest areas for growth is handling pressure when plays break down, adjusting on the fly and keeping his line protected. A slot receiver who knows how to uncover underneath and work the scramble drill can be a real asset there.
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