Michigan’s recruiting success has been well-documented in the state of New Jersey over the last three years or so.
The Wolverines currently have 12 players on their roster from the Garden State, including freshman viper Brad Hawkins.
Hawkins came to Michigan as a wide receiver but was quickly switched to safety. He revealed that he has since been moved to viper, having played there since the Air Force game on Sept. 16.
“I look at [sophomore] Khaleke [Hudson] to see what he’s doing [at the position],” Hawkins explained. “I watch his steps and his placement and see how far he is off the ball — just the little things. Whenever I go on the field, I try to do whatever I can to help the team. I also listen to the coaches to get better, and everything is kind of falling into place.”
The freshman revealed what the biggest challenge has been in regards to learning his new position.
“There’s a lot of blitzes,” he exclaimed. “I’m used to just hanging out and not necessarily blitzing that much. I need to get better at my pass rush. Learning the whole secondary — corner, safety and even viper — has really helped me understand the defense.”
Although he hails from Pennsauken, N.J., Hawkins said he never considered attending home-state Rutgers.
“Nope, I didn’t,” he laughed. “They actually recruited me kind of late, and there just weren’t good signs over there at the time.
“Michigan got involved with me my sophomore year when coach Brady Hoke was still here.”
Hawkins expanded a bit more on what the recruiting process was like for him and his New Jersey brethren.
“We all just kept the recruiting process to ourselves and did what was best for us,” he said. “Sometimes we took visits together, but everyone has a different mind. Some of us wound up together, while others are spread apart.
“We just have great players in both South Jersey and North Jersey. We’ve definitely been under looked. A lot of teams have started to recruit New Jersey more lately.”
Although he had plenty of good things to say about his home state, Hawkins was sure to add that he's loving it here in Ann Arbor, and doesn’t really miss anything about his home.
---
• Talk about this article inside The Fort
• Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes
• Learn more about our print and digital publication, The Wolverine
• Follow us on Twitter: @TheWolverineMag, @BSB_Wolverine, @JB_ Wolverine, @AustinFox42, @AndrewVcourt and @Balas_Wolverine
• Like us on Facebook
