EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Hooker Talks Commitment

Linebacker Garrett Hooker made it official today and committed to run with the Wolfpack.  We caught up with him tonight and wanted to get his take on what led him to make this decision.  While Hooker listed a variety of reasons for his commitment, relationships were at the top of his list.

“I knew when I was at camp at State on Thursday that I was going to commit.  It’s all love down there.  It’s fun.  Everyone’s so close,” Hooker said. “I know a lot of the guys that are on the team already.  I know Emanuel Olenga, Nyheim Hines, Woody Cornwell and Reggie Gallaspy.  Reggie is one of my best friends.  In fact, Reggie and Woody and I played pop warner football together as kids.  It feels like family down there.  It feels like home.”

Hooker also said that he wanted to go somewhere close to home so his parents could come and see him play.  When he left NC State on Thursday, he told his mom that he was going to commit.

“There’s nothing more I could want, so I just went ahead and called them, because West Virginia, Virginia Tech and Clemson were all close to offering me, but I have been to all of those schools, and I knew I wanted to go to State, so I just went ahead and pulled it.” said Hooker

This wasn’t the first time that the NC State coaching staff laid their eyes on Hooker.  The coaching staff realized last summer that this kid could hit, but their greatest concern was whether or not he follow a receiver in a pass drop.

“Last year I went to camp at NC State.  They had already watched my film, and they knew that I could play the run, and that I could tackle.  But at last years camp I ran a 5.0 40-yard dash,” Hooker said. “So they didn’t know if I could play in space or pass drops, so they didn’t offer me last year.  But I went to camp this year and ran a 4.76, a 4.3 shuttle and did pretty good in one-on-one drills.  Obviously a lot had changed and they offered me.”

The coaching staff has plans for Hooker to play the “Mike backer” position when he arrives.

Hooker already switched roles from recruit to recruiter before he even committed.  Before he left camp last Thursday, he asked Coach White who he should be going after.

“I’ve already started recruiting.  I knew after I left Raleigh on Thursday that I was going to go to State.  From that point on, Coach White was telling me the guys they are going after like Diondre Overton, Cornell Powell, Dexter Lawrence.  I’ve been hitting them up…I’ve been camping with these guys for years.  I’m going to try to get these guys down to State and do something big down here.  NC State is getting top notch guys…guys like Darian Roseboro.  This program is going up.  We’re trying to win championships down in Raleigh.