In the Trenches: Hawkins 'Can't Wait' for Camp, to Develop as a Player
4/1/2021 8:30:00 AM | Football, Features
By Brian Boesch
In this week's edition of the "In the Trenches" podcast, Jon Jansen catches up with Brad Hawkins about his observations from spring practice, his transition from wide receiver to defensive back, and the new-look defensive coaching staff and system.
Brad Hawkins has experienced significant change in his collegiate career. A four-star wide receiver recruit out of Camden, N.J., Hawkins primarily played special teams as a true freshman for the Wolverines in 2017, before transitioning to the secondary. By the 2019 season, Hawkins was a starter at safety and earned the team's Most Improved Player honor on defense.
Even though the results have been strong, Hawkins admitted that the position change took a toll on him early on in his career.
"When I worked out, it was always 'receiver, receiver, receiver,'" Hawkins told Jon Jansen on this week's "In the Trenches" podcast. "Being a defensive back, it's everything that a receiver does, backwards."
"It's definitely been a grind," Hawkins continued, "but you always can get better at something. When you put the work in, you grind it out ... there's no excuses on why you can't put the work in."
Since announcing his return to Michigan for a fifth year on Jan. 11, Hawkins has been putting in plenty of work. In particular, he has prioritized enhanced athleticism to go along with better fundamentals, such as hand placement and proper footing.
"I'm very excited to continue building and can't wait until camp and can't wait to develop myself as a football player," Hawkins said.
This season, Hawkins and the Wolverines' defense as a whole will develop with a new-look defensive staff, led by first-year defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald, who has an expansive NFL background -- largely with the Baltimore Ravens -- and that experience has helped to shape Michigan's defensive philosophy.
"We're learning NFL concepts," Hawkins said. "We're learning NFL defense, so it's definitely something that's a little challenging, but also good for us."
Of course, the primary objective is to win on Saturdays in the fall, but an NFL-based system also can help current players get a jump on their future football goals. Hawkins has aspirations to play on Sundays, so Michigan's defensive evolution, coupled with his willingness to put in the work, will help with that process.
"It's something that's really, really good for us, helping us learning it now, so when we get to the next level, we'll be very comfortable doing it," Hawkins said. "We just want to continue to learn from them, continue to grow from them, and hopefully, in the future, we all see each other at the next level."
