Former Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker has accepted an invitation to the 2023 Reese’s Senior Bowl, but won’t play in the game due to the knee injury he suffered in November.

Hooker, the 2022 SEC Offensive Player of the Year, will participate in key off-field activities in the week leading up to the Feb. 4 Senior Bowl at Mobile’s Hancock Whitney Stadium, executive director Jim Nagy said. Alabama Heisman Trophy winner DeVonta Smith used a similar plan during Senior Bowl week while recovering from a broken finger in 2021.

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“(Hooker) will go through team meetings and interviews (with NFL scouts), both of which are critical for QBs,” Nagy said via text message. “He more than earned that opportunity on the field this year.”

Hooker passed for 3,135 yards and 27 touchdowns with just two interceptions in 11 games in 2022, when he finished fifth in Heisman Trophy voting. He suffered a torn ACL in his left knee early during a loss to South Carolina on Nov. 21 and missed the remainder of the season.

Not counting Hooker, five quarterbacks have been confirmed for the 2023 Senior Bowl: TCU’s Max Duggan (the Heisman runner-up), Fresno State’s Jake Haener, Houston’s Clayton Tune, BYU’s Jaren Hall and Shepherd’s Tyson Bagent. Nagy indicated Friday that Georgia’s Stetson Bennett is a strong candidate for the sixth and final spot, though he has not yet been officially invited.

The 2023 Reese’s Senior Bowl kicks off at 1:30 p.m. on Feb. 4, with television coverage via NFL Network. For ticket information, visit SeniorBowl.com/tickets.