Brandon Hawkins: Austin area Capital One Bank High Yield Student Athlete of the Week

When Brandon Hawkins zeroes in, not much can stop him.

Not a severe knee injury. Not a couple of losing seasons. And certainly not a single tackler.

The 5-foot-11, 190-pound junior tailback from tiny St. Andrew's (Austin, Texas) High School let few get in his way last week while rushing for 169 yards and four touchdowns in a 62-14 win over Reagan on Friday night.

He now has 322 yards and six touchdowns for the 2-0 Crusaders, who were a combined 3-17 the last two seasons.

For another breakout game, Hawkins was selected the Austin area Capital One Bank High Yield Student Athlete of the Week.

“I wouldn’t say there was a whole lot of gaping hole out there for him to run through,” St. Andrew’s coach Ty Detmer said. “He created a lot of space himself. And he broke a lot of tackles on the way to the end zone. When he sees that end zone, no one can really show him down.”

Precisely.

Tunnel-vision. Determination. Single-minded focus.

All those things describe Hawkins, said Detmer, who certainly knows a few things about gifted and competitive athletes.

The 44-year-old who was born in San Marcos, Texas, played high school ball at Southwest (San Antonio), broke several NCAA records and won the Heisman Trophy at BYU, played 12 years in the NFL.

He likes just about everything about Hawkins’ game, but wouldn’t mind if he wasn’t a bit more vocal.

Hawkins is very quiet, humble lad who just does most of his talking with his shoulder pads and high knees.

“He’s a team captain and the players all respect him,” Detmer said. “They like how he plays and handles himself.”

Especially after adversity.

He was a starter as a freshman, but his second varsity start he tore his ACL and missed the rest of the season. Last year, not quite 100 percent, the rushed for 1,028 yards and 10 touchdowns helping the Crusaders to a 3-7 season.

That was a vast improvement from 0-10 the season before, Detmer’s first. Slowly but surely St. Andrew’s is growing up with a strong and athletic Hawkins leading the charge.

“We played a lot of freshman and sophomores last year,” Detmer said. “They’re all getting a little bigger and stronger and gaining confidence. I think we’re all in the same boat that we’re moving in the right direction. We just need to continue to work and keep on plugging.” 

With Hawkins running the ball and transfer quarterback Carter Tomsu flinging it around in Detmer’s pro-style attack, the Crusaders looked primed to make a complete transformation from two seasons ago.

The team’s climb coincides with that of Hawkins after his ACL tear. It’s not really a coincidence.

“His attitude when he got hurt was just come back stronger,” Detmer said. “He worked diligently. He did all the right things. He got even faster and stronger. Last year he had a fantastic comeback season. This year, he’s picked up where he left off. He’s surpassed where he was.”

So can he play at the next level, even though he competes for the small private school?

“Absolutely,” Detmer said. “Not just because of the stats he’s producing but he’s a very good student. He puts in the work you need to on and off the field. Skill-set he’s the type of kid who can play in any system.

“He can get to the edge or run with power or in the open field. He’s a good downhill runner. He can catch the ball. He’s a good combination of everything. We’ve even used him in the Wildcat.

“I’ll say this. The young lad has gained some tough yards for us. He can do it all.”