Tag: Maliek Hawkins

Oklahoma QB target Michael Hawkins announces commitment date

Four-Star QB target Michael Hawkins announces new commitment date. Oklahoma Sooners set to battle it out with TCU.

Once thought a heavy Oklahoma lean, Sooners quarterback target Michael Hawkins backed off his original commitment date of January 31st. With the uncertainty created as Jeff Lebby was being approached for the Alabama offensive coordinator job, things became a little murky in the Sooners’ pursuit of the four-star field general out of Texas.

Things have stabilized regarding Lebby. He’s entrenched as the Sooners’ OC. Hawkins also has decided that he is ready to commit and will announce his decision on April 8th.

Hawkins said via his Twitter account, “‘Moment of clarity.’ I will be announcing my commitment April 8th…”

With his moment of clarity, Hawkins could set the table for Oklahoma as they look to break the ice on their 2024 class.

His decision also directly affects Big 12 rival TCU, who brought in Kendal Briles, the former offensive coordinator at Arkansas. Arkansas and Oklahoma led for months in the recruitment of Hawkins until Briles replaced Garrett Riley after Riley left for Clemson.

TCU is in the hunt for Hawkins because of Briles’ move and shouldn’t be counted out. As it stands, Oklahoma and TCU look set to duke it out on the recruiting trail for Hawkins and will likely do battle for four-star wide receiver [autotag]Bryant Wesco[/autotag]. Oklahoma appears the favorite for Wesco.

Hawkins’s recruitment also has a domino effect that could favor the Oklahoma Sooners if they were fortunate to land the quarterback prospect.  Davon Mitchell, a five-star tight end in the class of 2025, is a close friend and favorite target of Michael Hawkins when they played together at Allen High School. He seems highly invested in the final destination of his old QB. There are rumblings that Mitchell plans to reclassify for the 2024 class.

The desire to play together in college has been noted before. The Sooners would love to reunite Hawkins and Mitchell in Norman.

Additionally, Oklahoma could even get the jump on another Hawkins, as younger brother Maliek is a 2025 cornerback prospect who just received an OU offer this week. Landing Michael would position the Sooners to land the Maliek.

With months to spare before signing day, a commitment from Michael Hawkins could impact the present and future of Oklahoma football.

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Recruits react on social media after visit with Oklahoma Sooners

Recruits react on social media to their time spent with the Oklahoma Sooners over the weekend.

This past weekend, the Oklahoma Sooners hosted a number of prospects in the 2024 and 2025 recruiting classes. The weekend is beginning to pay dividends. The Sooners received several predictions over the last couple of days that have them trending in a positive direction.

Oklahoma received projections for 2024 running back Xavier Robinson and 2025 defensive back Maliek Hawkins. And late Sunday night, the Sooners received a crystal ball for 2024 five-star defensive lineman Williams Nwaneri.

Though Oklahoma hasn’t received a commitment yet in the 2024 cycle, this weekend and the others they’ll host this spring will go a long way to laying the foundation for the 2024 recruiting class. The on-campus recruiting staff, led by Lee Davis, put together another fantastic weekend for prospects from around the country.

Sooners receive Crystal Ball for 2025 cornerback Maliek Hawkins

Fresh off a big recruiting weekend in Norman, the Oklahoma Sooners received a crystal ball prediction to land 2025 CB Maliek Hawkins.

The Oklahoma Sooners had the first of several big recruiting weekends in the month of March. While much of the focus is on the 2024 class, the Sooners did host several prospects in the 2025 recruiting cycle.

That includes 2025 Emerson cornerback [autotag]Maliek Hawkins[/autotag]. As a sophomore in high school, Hawkins already has offers from three schools; Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas State.

The Sooners recently offered the talented cornerback prospect and have an inside track because of the coaching staff’s relationship with the family. Brent Venables coached his father, Mike, back in the early 2000s. Maliek’s older brother [autotag]Michael Hawkins[/autotag] has also been heavily recruited by the Sooners for much of the last year and have been the trending favorite to land the 2024 four-star quarterback.

But apart from the family connection, Maliek is a player, someone that could bring a lot to the Oklahoma Sooners’ secondary. He already has the size, standing six feet tall as a sophomore.

He’s a physical player, unafraid to come up and make a hit in run support or in the wide receiver screen game. He plays with an edge in press coverage, looking to set the tone physically in his matchups. He does a good job mirroring receivers off the line of scrimmage and displays the ability to break up the pass at the catch point.

With Maliek in town, the Sooners issued an offer for the talented cornerback prospect, and OUInsider’s Parker Thune wasted little time issuing a crystal ball in favor of Oklahoma.

Maliek Hawkins’ Recruiting Profile

Predictions

Film

Sooners land Rivals Futurecast for 2024 4-Star QB Michael Hawkins

The Oklahoma Sooners received a Rivals Futurecast for 2024 four-star quarterback Michael Hawkins.

The Oklahoma Sooners still have more than a year until 2024 national signing day, but they look on the verge of landing their first commitment in the cycle at the end of January.

The Sooners received promising news on four-star quarterback [autotag]Michael Hawkins[/autotag] on Sunday. Nick Harris of Rivals issued a futurecast projecting the Sooners to land the talented four-star quarterback. That makes four predictions in favor of the Sooners.

Hawkins, who is the son of former Sooner Mike Hawkins, is a great fit for Jeff Lebby’s offense. He’s a dual-threat quarterback able to make plays down the field with his arm. Hawkins displays great contact balance and elusiveness in the pocket. Even while evading the rush, he does a great job of keeping his eyes downfield to make plays in the passing game. He’s also a fantastic runner with the speed to run away from the defense.

If the Oklahoma Sooners land a commitment from Hawkins at the end of January, it would be a phenomenal way to kick off the 2024 recruiting class. This time a year ago, Jackson Arnold committed in January. That early commitment helped the Sooners have a tremendous year on the recruiting trail for 2023. Could Hawkins’ commitment do the same for the 2024 cycle?

Michael Hawkins’ Recruiting Profile

Projections

Film

Hudl

Recruits react to time spent with the Oklahoma Sooners at Brent Venables Camp

Closing out the month of July with incredible momentum, the Oklahoma Sooners hosted recruits for Brent Venables’ football camp.

Oklahoma Sooners recruiting is on fire over the last month, adding nine commitments and pushing their class to No. 6 in the 247Sports team composite rankings. With several more players expected to commit to the Sooners in the 2023 cycle, the Sooners have a shot at earning a top-three recruiting class when it’s all said and done.

With July coming to a close and fall camp right around the corner, the Sooners took the opportunity to host recruits across the next three cycles at Brent Venables Football Camp earlier this week.

Venables’ camp has been huge for the Sooners, who found two members of their 2023 recruiting class in [autotag]Keyon Brown[/autotag] and [autotag]Jasiah Wagoner[/autotag] earlier this summer. Casting a wide net over the next few cycles, Venables and his coaching staff are hoping to find players for the future as well as pour into the next crop of collegiate athletes.

With Oklahoma recruiting trending, let’s take a look at what some of the best social media reactions from recruits who camped with the Sooners this week.