Can we just pretend to have fun?
I fully realize college sports have changed, and we’re never going back to the way things used to be. But have we really reached the point where we can’t even enjoy a walk-off field goal victory, one that featured one of the greatest individual performances in Mountaineer Field history, without worrying that our quarterback might have played himself out of our price range for NEXT season? Are we really at a point where we can’t simply enjoy a big win without immediately worrying about the financial implications of what comes next?
The ball had barely gone through uprights on Saturday when the hand-wringing around where Michael Hawkins Jr. would play next year began. Sharing his impressive stat line on social media was met with comments like: “He will be at Indiana next year.” “No way we will be able to afford to keep him next year.” And while that may end up being true, it doesn’t take away from what we have had the privilege of watching this year, which by the way, is barely over the half way point. I don’t want to live in a world where you can’t enjoy greatness in the moment, for fear of losing it next season.
But here we are like it or not, and here I am adding to the discourse by writing about it. Instead of adding to the anxiety that fans are feeling, I’m going to explain why I’m not worried about, but before I do I want to make one thing perfectly clear… I really hope we see Michael Hawkins in the blue and gold for the next 2 seasons. I do believe he is the perfect fit for the Rich Rod system and the sky is the limit for what we can achieve with him leading the squad. I just refuse to be held hostage to the thought of him leaving to the point of not enjoying him while he is here.
Reason #1 He would still be at Oklahoma in the old system.
It’s not like he came here out of High School. The same rules that allowed him to come to WVU this year, will be the same ones that MIGHT allow him to go somewhere else next year. I would love to see a rule limiting transfers to one time per college career, but until then this is the game we are playing, and the fact that we hit a home run with him means we are at least playing it well. Which leads me to…
Reason #2 This means we are doing something right.
I would be more worried if nobody wanted him. This means we evaluated well, and went out and got the perfect guy for our system in the offseason. So many teams swing and miss on these every year. Michigan just benched their QB Underwood mid game. Most people have making more than twice what Hawkins is this year. If we can do it once, we can do it again.
Reason #3 Hawkins success could could turn WVU into a QB destination.
Are you backup Power 4 QB frustrated with a lack of playing time? Come to WVU and show the nation what you can do. Look how well it worked for Michael Hawkins Jr. This could be a great pitch for Rich Rod to attract talent in the years to come.
Reason #4 I believe we will be competitive to retain him next year.
I’m not saying we can get into the 5 million dollar range if that is indeed the number the he gets offered elsewhere, but if it stays under 3 million, which by most accounts would double what he made this year, I think we can get there. I would like to believe that if we get close to the number he is offered elsewhere he would want to stay in this offense. There are maybe a couple other offenses in the country that are as good of a fit for him as WVU’s. They might not even need a quarterback. He knows what if feels like to get benched and be backup in a system that wasn’t a great fit for him from his time at Oklahoma, I would have to imagine he will be careful to make sure he doesn’t make that mistake again.
Reason #5 There is still a lot of season left.
I think we have seen enough from Hawkins this year to know that it isn’t a flash in the pan. He is legit. But who knows what happens for the rest of the season? I’m not talking about injury, I don’t even want to put that into the air. What I’m referring to is the natural ebb and flow of the season. So many times the Heisman winner is the one who get’s hot at the right time and overtakes the darlings of the earlier points of the season. But even more than that is the fact that we get at least 5 more games to watch Michael Hawkins Jr. as a mountaineer THIS year. Let’s enjoy it. It’s been awhile since we have had someone under center like him. Don’t waste another thought on 2o27 Michael Hawkins when 2026 Michael Hawkins is right there in front of you.