Coaches and teammates like his poise and maturity, opponents fear his athletic ability, but now Hawkins steps into an entirely new setting: the Red River Rivalry.

However, three first half turnovers from Arnold in week four forced head coach Brent Venables to pull his starter and insert freshman Michael Hawkins Jr. into the game. The youngster settled in against the Volunteers and moved the ball in the late stages of the game, earning his first career start against Auburn the following week.

Michael Hawkins Jr. displayed tenacity and an unflinching determination in his first career start to help propel Oklahoma to an improbable comeback against Auburn.