Four-star Oklahoma QB commit Michael Hawkins ready to have fun, ball out at Elite 11 Finals

Four-star QB Michael Hawkins is ready for his turn to compete.

The face of Oklahoma‘s 2024 recruiting class, Hawkins is one of a handful of top passers from around the country invited to the Elite 11 Finals this week in Los Angeles. The On3 Industry Ranking’s No. 22-rated passer in the 2024 class out Frisco (Texas) Emerson High School has been anxiously preparing for this moment and ready for the action.

“I’ve always watched the Elite 11 growing up, especially as Justin Fields and Trevor Lawrence were there — that was a big one for me because I watched that the whole time it went on,” Hawkins told On3. “The build-up of me getting the invite to the Finals was great for me because it’s taking another step in my recruitment, building myself and it’ll be great getting the opportunity to go out with some of the top guys and compete, and I’m ready to compete and throw with these guys.”

Orchestrating the offense at Allen (Texas) a year ago, the 6-foot-1, 185-pound Hawkins was the District Offensive Newcomer of the Year as a sophomore and a First-Team All-District selection in 2022.

This offseason, Hawkins’ focus has been on remaining consistent, especially this week in the Finals.

“Just being really consistent with my throws and having fun,” Hawkins started. “When I have fun, I feel like I do my best, and when I’m performing my best I don’t overthink it; I just go have fun and throw the ball around.”

“I also want to keep my footwork right and ball out, and also have fun and get to know the guys more,” he added.

Hawkins is coming off an official visit to Norman, another opportunity to soak up the culture around Brent Venables and Jeff Lebby. While he’s competing out on the West Coast, the Sooners are bracing for their biggest recruiting weekend of the summer for the ChampU BBQ on June 16-18.

Their quarterback believes the class will be in full swing by summer’s end.

“The big thing for me is putting a good example out for the coaching staff at Oklahoma and especially for myself, my dad, and my mom. It’s a big opportunity for me to get out there and throw it around and show I’m one of the top guys in the class and I can really compete,” Hawkins said.

“The guys we have right now are great with Zion (Kearney), Jaydan (Hardy) and Isaiah (Autry). Those guys are really good,” he continued. “I’m looking forward to adding to that list with some great OL coming in and some DL would really help us out. We’re in a great position with a lot of guys right now, especially going into this next weekend. Kedren Young, Bennett Warren, all those guys are coming in and we’re getting our class going at the end of the summer.