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Charles Hawkins Jr.
Charles Hawkins with his guys at Moody Bible
PRIME TIME IS NOW FOR HAWKINS
By Michael Kosman
(Chicago, Il.) About the only thing two-sport star Charles Hawkins Jr. plays coy with is his athletic future. "I'll be a professional athlete in five years", the basketball and football standout proudly and with a great deal of humility boldly states. But in which sport? Other than that minor detail, Hawkins is pretty straight forward about where he has been and, outside of sports, where he might be heading.
Charles Hawkins, now at Graceland University in Iowa and majoring in business administration, is a graduate of the first class to ever attend Walter Payton College Prep High School. The vibrant campus, nestled in between the Chicago west Loop and the Cabrini-Green housing projects, is where this Graceland freshman graduated from last year. It is here that under the head coaching of George Turner, Hawkins guided his basketball team to a surprising and eye-opening 21-9 record in 2004-2005. "He is the best basketball coach I have ever had in my life", Hawkins exclaimed in the bubbly lobby of his old school. "He allowed me to lead the team, but taught me about being a man and a leader. He held me to a very high standard".
At 6'1 and 186 lbs., this shooting/point guard began to generate interest from other schools during that season. But it was a videotape from a high school all-star football game that impressed the coaches from Graceland University, located near Des Moines. They made the offer and Hawkins signed it. "I actually had better opportunities after I faxed them my letter of intent", the current running back said. " I was naïve to the (recruiting) process and now know the politics that go into it. I have been told to make the most out of it, and I feel I have".
Hawkins knows where he came from as well as his inspiration. It's the north side of Chicago and it's his dad. Hawkins eyes illuminate when he speaks of either. His father, Charles Hawkins Sr. and who is a stock trader, raised him in a single parent home around the Clarendon Park area. Hawkins states his father let him make his mistakes and learn from them, but also that he better get good grades or there would be no sports at all. "I love him to death", he said of his father. "Growing up with a single parent and it's your dad is not typical in an urban situation. He's my heart, my soul, my inspiration". Inspired also by the upsurge in competitiveness from north side teams, Hawkins rattles off names of eminent players from area schools as if they are standing right next to him. "This is really Chicago around here and it's tough to grow up here", Hawkins said. "They can ball on the west side and the south side, but give the north-siders credit because we handle ours too".
Although it is football that powers his engine now, it is basketball that will probably fuel it later. Division 1 schools have taken notice, both the football and basketball sides, and Hawkins definitely will be at one of those schools next season. Football coaches at the University of Kansas have already provided a complete tour to Hawkins, who came away impressed with newer facilities soon to be added there. Tyrone Willingham and the University of Washington Huskies await an official Hawkins visit. San Jose State is also on the short list. But whatever school wins the services of this intelligent, well-spoken, and humble young man, they may eventually need to thank Charles Sr., not Charles Jr. "My dad told me that I am a Student-athlete first", he said, "and everyday I thank him for keeping me on the right path".
