Hawkins’ Football Desire, Motivation Come from Family, Hometown Camden
10/31/2019 11:00:00 AM | Football, Features
By Steve Kornacki
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Brad Hawkins stands out as highly motivated even on a University of Michigan football team loaded with relentless personalities. The junior free safety can't get enough film study, can't get enough practice reps, can't make enough plays in a game.
Entering Saturday's (Nov. 2) game at Maryland, Hawkins leads all defensive backs and is third on the Wolverines with 47 tackles, and he generally makes statement hits against each opponent.
Hawkins saw Notre Dame tailback Jafar Armstrong running for the left sideline and cut him off at the pass, nailing him at the line of scrimmage for no gain as viper Khaleke Hudson came in to assist.
"A lot of teams try to attack us on the edge," said Hawkins, "and so that's something I take pride in. As a defensive back group, period, we take pride in coming up and making plays."
At Penn State, KJ Hamler, perhaps the toughest Big Ten receiver to bring down, caught a third-and-six pass designed to display his speed-in-space capabilities. Only, he had no space to race. Hawkins hit and wrapped him up the instant he made the catch for no gain.
Dangerous Rutgers tailback Isaih Pacheco caught a pass on third-and-four and had three yards when he caught the ball, but didn't get another inch. Hawkins squared up to hit him, rode him and tossed him down near the sideline.
Another opponent's drive was over because Hawkins did his job so completely.
"He's been a really good, efficient tackler," said Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh. "He's getting to the ball and playing with great effort."
Hawkins brings down Penn State's KJ Hamler
What's at the root of his desire and motivation?
"I play for my family," said Hawkins, 21. "I have seven siblings, and I'm the youngest. My family is something that motivates me a lot. I have a lot of nieces and nephews that look up to me. I have a nephew whose father passed away when he was only 3 years old, and he motivates me so much to just keep going because it's like I light the fire in his life."
"And I play for Camden, New Jersey," continued Hawkins. "It's a very tough place to grow up, very challenging. There are a lot of killings and a lot of violence that goes on there. So, that definitely keeps me motivated, to play for the people there who have supported me so much."
He credits his parents, Rhonda Harris and Brad Hawkins Sr., for his direction.
Brad Jr. said his "family" also extends to Wolverines center Cesar Ruiz, his lifelong friend.
"Our families are very close friends, too," said Hawkins. "They mostly travel together and sit together when they come to our games. Cesar's my roommate as well. We have an apartment we share. We play Xbox a lot. But we're really barely home between school and football. We're always doing something."
They've known one another "forever," according to Hawkins, being apart only for the one season Hawkins spent at Suffield (Connecticut) Academy after graduating from Camden High, and the two seasons Ruiz spent at IMG Academy in Sarasota, Florida.
"I've played with Cesar my whole life," said Hawkins. "We began playing Little League and middle school together in Camden. It's definitely been a great experience having someone who knows me very well, somebody who's always by my side. I just know he's always going to be there for me.
"That's something that's definitely helped me a lot in life and in school, and will help me in the future. It's amazing, just unbelievable, to know that me and Cesar are still together to this day. He's always helping me, regardless of what it is. And same for me for him. We're very much alike."
Ruiz
Hawkins chose the Wolverines first.
"When Cesar committed to Michigan," said Hawkins, "he told me I was definitely one of the reasons he came here. But it was so crazy because we didn't talk about going to the same school. It blew my mind; I didn't expect him to come here at all. We've been through everything together, and Cesar said he hopes one of these days we'll end up on ESPN's '30 for 30' (documentaries)."
Ruiz and Hawkins are two of the most effective, assignment-competent players on the team.
"I take a lot of pride in just knowing what I have to do," said Hawkins. "I watch tape (of opponents), seeing things they do and understanding a team's offense, understanding what their receivers are doing, basically just getting the upper hand.
"I watch a lot of film of a lot of teams. I watch NFL teams. I pick up everything I can."
Hawkins often watches tape with Michigan safeties coach Chris Partridge.
"He's influenced me a lot," said Hawkins. "He's from where I'm from in New Jersey, and he's always been there for me, always been honest regardless of whether it's good or bad. He's been with me every step of the way and is just a great coach. I give a lot of thanks to him for my success."
Hawkins caught 51 passes for 868 yards and 11 touchdowns at Suffield, and being on the other side of the ball has been beneficial on defense.
"It helped me a lot just knowing the different receiver routes -- how they're going to stem and just ball skills," said Hawkins. "That definitely helped me.
"Suffield also gave me a lot of insight into life. It was very different from what I was used to and definitely opened my eyes by seeing different things and meeting a lot of important people. I now have friends all around the world, and it got me ready for college."
Hawkins was given his choice of which side of the ball to play on at Michigan, and he chose defense without hesitation. He contributed to special teams his first two seasons and began getting significant playing time at safety in 2018, garnering 36 tackles.
"I love defense because you get to hit somebody and not get into trouble for it," said Hawkins, who packs a wallop for somebody 6-foot-1 and 218 pounds. "I'm a very physical person and I felt it would play a big role in my success at Michigan if I played defense. With my abilities, ball skills and understanding of receivers, it made sense."
Hawkins is a ball hawk with a great nose for the football.
"It's something that I work on," he said. "I work on tracking the ball in practice and going to get it. If they throw the ball into a crowd, I'm going to go get it tracking the ball. We work on that a lot here with Coach Partridge, and that definitely helps us track the ball a lot.
"The little things definitely matter -- especially in this defense. You've got to play the right gaps and have the right footwork. So, definitely the little things play a big part on the field and repping it over and over again in practice, that's something that helps us and this team a lot."
Even in the 35-14 loss at Wisconsin, the season's lowest point, Hawkins followed up his 10-tackle game against Army with another 10-tackle game.
"You don't talk about too many guys who have good games when you lose," Harbaugh noted, "but Brad really played well."
Hawkins is a model of consistency -- making a difference on the field and with his teammates. He credits Tyree Kinnel, a safety and team captain in 2018, with showing him the ropes, and now he's doing likewise with nickel back and safety Daxton Hill and others. Partridge, he said, asked him to help Hill with everything he could.
"It helps me with being a leader," said Hawkins. "It helps with understanding a lot of different people on the team. So, it's something I take pride in, and I've just got to keep it going and help these guys get on the right path. Because when I leave, they're next up."
Paying forward matters to Hawkins, who looks back at his nephew, Mah'ki, and fully comprehends why opportunities can't to be wasted.
