Really, since the day both players signed, West Virginia QB Mike Hawkins Jr. and RB Cam Cook have been compared to Pat White and Steve Slaton.
Obviously, that's some major hype and to some degree, you could even say unfair for a couple of guys who had never played a down in Morgantown prior to this season. But the dynamic duo has lived up to the billing and is giving everyone around the country flashbacks to what White and Slaton did in Rich Rodriguez's offense.
Hawkins is the only quarterback in the country with 1,500+ yards throwing AND 700+ yards rushing, while Cook has the fifth-most rushing yards in the country (833). Everyone knows Hawkins still has two years of eligibility beyond this year, but you may not know that Cook can come back for one more year as well, if he believes that's the best thing for him.
On Tuesday, he was asked about the possibility of that, briefly stating, “I mean, I’ve thought about it, but I really haven’t, like got too much into it. I really want to see how this year goes. Just focus on this year.”
It's difficult to truly know where guys are on draft boards at this time of the year, partially because there's still a lot of football left to be played. But with Cook, it's very possible that he could be a day-three pick (rounds 4-7).
As productive as he's been over the past two years, there are some things that folks at the next level are going to knock him for — he's older, has a ton of miles on him (598 career carries and counting), and doesn't have breakaway speed.
There is definitely a world where WVU could put together an offer that rivals what he could make as a rookie in the NFL and perhaps even more. Just like front offices at the next level, you don't want to pay a big chunk of your money to a running back, but when you have a special talent like Cook, it's absolutely worth every penny, especially in this offense.
There is more to it, of course, than just retaining Hawkins and Cook, but if West Virginia can do that, they are without a doubt going to be a team that can enter the 2027 season as a legitimate Big 12 and College Football Playoff contender. Fielding a competitive defense just puts them over the top.
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