Caleb Hawkins doesn’t sound like a player chasing a headline season. He sounds like a back who knows exactly what kind of work the job demands.
At Oklahoma State media day, when a reporter asked, “What do you expect from yourself this season?” Hawkins kept it simple.
“To hopefully just be better than last year,” he said with a slight smile.
That answer carries some weight, because last year at North Texas he didn’t just have a good season - he put together one of the most eye-popping freshman campaigns in the country. Hawkins set the FBS record for most touchdowns scored by a freshman with 29, led the FBS in total touchdowns, rushing touchdowns and scoring, and picked up first-team freshman All-America honors along with second- or third-team All-America recognition from multiple outlets.
The numbers were outrageous: 1,434 rushing yards, 1,056 of them after contact, and 1,804 all-purpose yards. He touched the ball 263 times.
UNT ran it 517 times, and Hawkins handled 44.6% of those carries. No other back in the offense came close, with the next highest total at 75 carries.
That workload is exactly what head coach Eric Morris, who coached Hawkins at North Texas last season, says he’s trying to manage differently now. Morris said he felt Hawkins became overused, and he pointed to the American Championship game as the moment that concern became real.
“I thought there was times we probably put a little bit too much on him, to be honest with you,” Morris said. “And it came back [on us]. He he got hurt the first drive of the conference championship game, and it changed the outlook of what was going on.”
This time around, Morris has built out the backfield with more options. Oklahoma State brought in transfers Ayo Adeyi from James Madison, William Mason from Central Oklahoma, Tre Page III from Abilene Christian and Dennis Moody III from North Texas.
Adeyi was a 1,000-yard rusher under Morris at UNT before moving on to JMU. Mason has more than 1,500 career rushing yards at UCO.
Pate would have been a 1,000-yard rusher last year if not for missing a few games because of injury.
Freshman KD Jones from Jenks, Okla., is also in the mix, bringing 5,748 all-purpose yards for his career.
The important part for Hawkins is that this group doesn’t look like a bunch of clones. It looks like a toolkit.
“We’ll have some guy that weighs 225 pounds [Mason] and we'll have somebody that weighs like 180 [Page] that's really fast,” Hawkins said. “So, I think the diversity helps us a lot. They're not going to know who's coming out there and what skill set they're gonna bring.”
That variety gives Morris a chance to attack different matchups and, just as importantly, keep Hawkins from taking the kind of pounding he absorbed a year ago. Hawkins is 6-0 and 219 pounds, and he knows his game invites contact.
He’s built for it. But he also knows fresh legs matter, especially if Oklahoma State is good enough to be playing meaningful football late in the year.
Maybe the stat line won’t look like last season’s. Hawkins seems fine with that.
If the Cowboys can match North Texas’ 12-2 record from a year ago, that would be enough for him. And if that happens, Hawkins still figures to be right at the center of it, even if he isn’t asked to carry quite the same load.
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David Taylor Just Turned Up The Heat On Penn State
David Taylor is still setting the table for Oklahoma States biggest matches while the Cowboys get ready for a busy stretch to open the season. The first-year head coach said the program is prepared for any Penn State meeting whenever the Nittany Lions want it, and Oklahoma State is even leaving one date open each year in case the heavyweight showdown ever gets on the schedule. He also offered a few timely updates, including the Cowboys season-opening tournament on Nov. 1, the added year of eligibility for heavyweight Konner Doucet and a lower-bowl season-ticket sellout at Gallagher-Iba Arena.
There is also plenty happening beyond the headline rivalry chatter. Landon Robideau and Dreshaun Ross have qualified for the U20 World Championships in Slovakia, giving the Cowboys more international representation as the new season approaches. Still, the Penn State angle is the one that hangs over Taylors comments, especially with Oklahoma State looking to keep pushing for marquee duals that would carry real weight for the program and its fans. [Read more 🡒]
Oklahoma State Just Added A Homecoming Showcase Fans Will Circle
Before the regular season even tips, Oklahoma State has lined up a preseason slate that should give fans an early look at the mens basketball team in a setting that feels a little more meaningful than the usual tune-up. The Cowboys will host three Division I exhibition games, with New Mexico, Tulsa and Wisconsin all coming to Gallagher-Iba Arena as part of the build toward November.
The date that stands out most is Oct. 23, when Tulsa comes to Stillwater for a Homecoming showcase. The exhibitions come after the NCAA opened the door for teams to play three Division I exhibition games, and Oklahoma State is taking full advantage of the opportunity while details for the game-day experience are still to come. [Read more 🡒]