Full-circle journey leads Caleb Hawkins back to Oklahoma State

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Caleb Hawkins was once just a regular ‘ole Oklahoma State fan.

He paid hard-earned money to get into football games at Boone Pickens Stadium, idolized the great former Cowboy athletes and was rooted in the Bedlam rivalry growing up 58 miles south of Stillwater in Shawnee.

Hawkins was even lucky enough to attend the final Bedlam game in November 2023. And when OSU defeated Oklahoma 27-24, and all those Cowboys stormed the field, Hawkins couldn't resist. He too jumped the wall and ran all over the field to celebrate.

“I’ve wanted to go here since I was little,” Hawkins said. “I grew up watching people at Boone Pickens (Stadium). All the greats; all the wonderful people that have (come) out of here.”

Now, Hawkins will get another opportunity to run all over the BPS field. And it will come in the fashion in which he always hoped it would.

After putting up a terrific freshman season at North Texas, Hawkins was one of 17 Mean Green players to follow coach Eric Morris to Stillwater. Hawkins now has the keys to OSU’s backfield and has the chance to be the next great Cowboy running back, a full-circle moment.

“This is my dream school,” Hawkins said.

Hawkins’ journey has been unique. He was overlooked coming out of North Rock Creek High School, holding offers from UNT, Emporia State and Central Oklahoma, but opted to go to Denton without knowing what his role would be.

Then after rushing for only 68 yards in UNT’s first two games last season, Hawkins burst onto the scene and became one of the best true freshmen in college football. He ran for 1,434 yards, averaged 6.2 yards per carry and led the NCAA in rushing touchdowns with 25.

The Mean Green finished 12-2, and Hawkins and new Cowboys quarterback Drew Mestemaker teamed to lead an offense that ranked No. 1 in the FBS in scoring. Now they’ll look to continue that magic in Stillwater for a program that badly needs to return to winning form.

“(Hawkins) would just kind of go and get in the end zone somehow,” Mestemaker said. “You would look at the box score at the end of the game, and you’re like, ‘Holy crap. He had 200 yards rushing and three touchdowns.’ He was just consistent the whole time.”

When Hawkins entered the transfer portal, he was one of the top running backs available and could have been highly sought-after on the open market with teams like OU, Texas, Clemson and Florida State searching for tailbacks.

But in the end, Hawkins didn’t open his recruitment, and was set on sticking with the coaches who put him in this position: Morris and former UNT running backs coach Patrick Cobbs, who’s now on staff at OSU.

Cobbs and Hawkins have a tight-knit relationship, as Cobbs took a chance on Hawkins early, and their respective stories are similar. Cobbs is also a Shawnee native and was a lightly-recruited prospect who went on to overachieve at UNT.

Hawkins said once Cobbs told him he could join the Cowboys, he thought, ‘Wow. Dream come true.’ Now, they’ll continue their partnership and look to rebuild OSU’s rushing game after two poor seasons.

“I wasn’t too worried about anyone else,” Hawkins said. “... I was set on, in my mind, going with Coach Cobbs and Coach Morris. I loved how they (stuck by me) at UNT, so I knew that was the perfect decision to (stay with them).”