MORGANTOWN — Oklahoma football started the 2025 season 4-0 and was ranked at No. 5 in the AP Poll. Quarterback John Mateer was a Heisman Trophy hopeful after a signature win against Michigan.

After a strong start, Mateer’s campaign looked rocky after suffering an injury. He needed surgery on his broken thumb, putting his future in question. The Sooners’ season and National Championship hopes were up in the air.

With Mateer out for the foreseeable future, head coach Brent Venables had to rely on sophomore and former 4-star high school recruit Michael Hawkins Jr. Hawkins was an exciting prospect and showed flashes in the 2024 season, but not enough for Venables to roll with him in 2025.

With Mateer out, Venables had no choice, but he was confident in his sophomore.

“He’s a guy that believes in himself,” Venables said at the time. “He’s put a lot of work in. I love his level of consistency when it comes to his body of work. He’s got great self-awareness.”

Hawkins played the following week against Kent State. He completed 14 of 24 passes for 162 yards and had a total of four touchdowns. Oklahoma won 44-0 over the lower-tier FBS school. Hawkins got the job done.

Mateer came back the next week against Texas in the Red River Rivalry and played the rest of the season. Hawkins took a backseat.

Mateer is expected to return to the Sooners in 2026, so Hawkins hit the transfer portal and recently transferred to West Virginia. Rich Rodriguez took a shot at the two-year player, potentially giving him a chance at the starting spot over the younger Scotty Fox Jr., who played most of 2025 for the Mountaineers.

There’s no question Hawkins is a perfect fit for Rodriguez’s run-heavy offense. Hawkins played more in 2024, battling with Jackson Arnold for the starting spot, and played in seven games, making four starts. His legs and speed jumped off the page for Oklahoma beat writer and AP voter Mason Young of the Tulsa World.

“I think the thing you can’t deny is his speed,” Young said. “He’s a gifted runner. Has a good feel for space, and he can hit a home run. If you watch his first career start against Auburn, he broke like a 40-plus yard touchdown run.”

However, in the nine games Hawkins has played, there were some flaws. He was a true freshman, but in 2024, Hawkins was sacked 15 times, and then three times in limited action in 2025. Oklahoma’s O-line wasn’t the best in 2024, but it did improve in 2025.

“I will say that I feel like the game against Kent State this year, he was playing behind a significantly better offensive line,” Young said. “I feel like there were some plays out there that it felt a little bit like he was trying to do a little bit too much. But, I mean, that’s probably just a product of the situation.”

There’s also the bigger issue, which is his throwing inconsistency. WVU had a lot of great runners at QB in 2025. Jaylen Henderson and Khalil Wilkins could both make defenders miss. The only issue was that neither of them could consistently push the ball downfield. Fox was better at it, and that’s one of the reasons why he closed out the season.

Hawkins has the potential and arm strength. He just needs to be a bit more comfortable stepping in and delivering to his receivers.

“He throws a great ball,” Young said. “It all looks pretty good. It’s just the accuracy, the timing and the decision-making pieces of it. I think that was probably the most concerning thing about when he did play this season.”

Hawkins is still young. There’s still time to improve, and Venables trusted him to back up Mateer in a season where Oklahoma was looking to make a National Championship. There was also discussion of a quarterback competition if Mateer and Hawkins both returned for 2026.

It’ll be interesting to see if Hawkins can improve his throwing ability and take the starting spot from Fox. Hawkins might not be the best thrower, but he has the qualities off the field that Rodriguez looks for in a player. Maybe that was another reason he picked up the former 4-star.

“Michael’s a guy that’s a great teammate,” Venables said before Kent State. “He shows up every day. He’s got a level of consistency in how he competes. How coachable he is. He’s a tough kid. He’s wide open. He’s just ultra competitive.”