"We're 3-1 and No. 10 in the country," said Donald Hawkins. "We had our first loss to East Mississippi. I had a solid performance against (four-star DE) Denico Autry. We have five games left and then we hope to meet up with East Mississippi again in the state championship.
"It's a big rivalry with East Mississippi - especially with the coaches. We only lost by three points: 45-42. It went back and forth and we had a couple of mistakes that allowed them to win. They returned a missed field goal 105 yards for a touchdown; that's not something you see every day. We actually outgained them (545 yards to 386 yards)."
Coaches are raving about Hawkins' ability.
"They're telling me I have the ability to play on Sunday," he said. "They say I have everything coaches want in an offensive tackle, such as great hips and the way I strike and bend."
Hawkins plans to attend the Oklahoma State vs. Oklahoma game in December.
"I'm solid to Oklahoma State," he said. "Some schools are still trying to come at me: Ole Miss and FIU. I saw that Oklahoma State is up to No. 5 in the nation (after defeating Texas A&M)."