Mike Hawkins Jr. carved out a place in West Virginia football history on Saturday night, and he still has time to add to it.
With his second rushing touchdown of the game, Hawkins broke Pat White’s single-season WVU record for rushing scores, a mark that had stood atop the program’s list even when factoring in running backs. Hawkins now sits at 19 rushing touchdowns through nine games, putting him alone at the top of the Mountaineers’ single-season chart.
The record book behind him tells the story of how rare this kind of season is. Amos Zereoue had 18 in 1997, Pat White reached 18 in 2006, and Steve Slaton posted 17 in both 2005 and 2007. Hawkins has already moved past all of them, and with three games left plus a possible bowl game, there’s still room for the number to climb.
That possibility matters beyond Morgantown, too. Hawkins could finish with the most rushing touchdowns by a non-service academy quarterback since Colin Klein’s 27 for Kansas State in 2011. Northern Illinois’ Jordan Lynch had 23 in 2013.
What Hawkins is doing is bigger than one record, though. The source of West Virginia’s momentum is not one player alone, but it’s hard to ignore how much the offense changes with him in charge. He’s the kind of talent a program has to hold onto, especially one trying to get back to winning and back into the national conversation.
For West Virginia, the next step is obvious. If Rodriguez can keep Hawkins in Morgantown, the Mountaineers have a chance to build on this season instead of resetting at the game’s most important position. That makes Hawkins not just a star for now, but a central piece of whatever comes next.
In Other News...
WVU Wasted A Historic Night In A Loss Fans Will Hate
West Virginias trip to Texas Tech turned into one of those maddening Big 12 shootouts that leaves everyone exhausted and none the happier for it. In a game packed with offense and little margin for error, the Mountaineers were part of a first half that produced more than 892 yards of total offense, and Mike Hawkins Jr. still managed to carve out a place in the school record book by setting the program mark for rushing touchdowns by a quarterback in a single season.
Even with that kind of individual milestone, the result is what will sting most. West Virginia fell 53-48 after defensive breakdowns and a handful of critical late plays swung the finish in Texas Techs favor, turning a historic night for Hawkins into a loss the Mountaineers will be replaying for a while. [Read more 🡒]
WVUs PFF Review Shows Who Carried The Offense In Texas Tech Loss
Pro Football Focus review of West Virginias shootout loss to Texas Tech offered a clear snapshot of where the offense held up and where it broke down. Quarterback Mike Hawkins Jr. graded out well thanks to strong passing efficiency, giving the Mountaineers enough production to stay in the game, while the offensive line had a much tougher night trying to keep the pocket clean.
The defensive grades told a similar story of a few bright spots surrounded by too many issues. K.J. Henson and linebacker Isaiah Patterson drew notice for their work, but the secondary came under fire for shaky positioning and an inability to finish plays, leaving West Virginia with more questions than answers as it looks ahead. [Read more 🡒]
West Virginia Let An Upset Slip Away In One Brutal Stretch
West Virginia had Texas Tech on the ropes in a game that kept swinging from one sideline to the other, with big plays, penalties and defensive stands all tilting the odds in real time. ESPNs win probability chart told the story as much as the scoreboard did, showing the Mountaineers in position to pull off an upset before the games tempo and chaos started to work against them.
The frustration afterward was less about one single mistake than about a brutal stretch in which the momentum they had built slipped away almost all at once. West Virginias coach addressed it after the game, and the postgame discussion centered on how quickly a high-scoring win can disappear when a few critical snaps turn the other way. [Read more 🡒]