Oklahoma Insider Gives the Scoop on What WVU is Getting in QB Michael Hawkins Jr.

A detailed scouting report on the new West Virginia QB.

Oklahoma Sooners quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. (3) warms up before a college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners (OU) and the Auburn Tigers at Gaylord Family Ð Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, Okla., Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025. | BRYAN TERRY/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Monday morning, the West Virginia Mountaineers addressed two needs at once, picking up commitments from former Oklahoma QB Michael Hawkins Jr. and DB Maliek Hawkins, who are brothers.

Rich Rodriguez went through five quarterbacks in year one, largely due to health, but performance as well. Assuming Hawkins can avoid the injury bug, the Mountaineers may have a legit dude at quarterback that they can build around for the next three years.

To get more insight on the new Mountaineer signal caller, I reached out to a good buddy of mine, John Hoover, who covers the Sooners for Oklahoma On SI.

Q: How is he as a leader? Vocal?

“He’s a quiet leader, but not silent. He prefers to speak with his actions, and with his work ethic, which serves him well. But there’s been plenty of evidence in the last two years of him standing up and elevating his voice, and his teammates always seemed to respond. That’ll be an area where he can really make some strides at WVU.”

Q: What is his ceiling? Star, solid starter, etc.

“As he gains big-game experience, I do think he has star potential. Go back and watch his big run early and his big throw late at Auburn last year — OU’s first-ever SEC win — and you’ll see the potential. Tremendous speed, big arm, accurate enough. If he continues to work like he has, he can develop those tools into being a great quarterback.”

Q: Where does he need work?

“Like most QBs, he needs time on task reading defenses and quickening his progressions. Maybe early on, he can be someone who just reads half the field or a couple progressions before you open the whole playbook.

“His avalanche of turnovers vs. South Carolina last year left a permanent impression on OU fans, so valuing the football and making sound decisions are a couple of areas he’ll want to continue getting better at.

“Accuracy can always be better, and maybe that comes with more coaching — something he didn’t get a lot of in 2024. His fundamentals probably slipped as OU’s offensive staff was just a disaster. That seemed to get better last year as Arbuckle coached the QBs, but Hawkins had already requested to redshirt and only got meaningful snaps in the Kent State game, so we didn’t really see that progress in his game we thought we’d see.”

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