Hawken endures coaching, position changes to end career strong

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With the prevalence of the spread offense in college football, the fullback slowly is fading away from the football landscape.

But while other Big Ten schools have decided not to utilize one, the fullback is a very important part of MSU’s offense. And senior Andrew Hawken is a big reason why.

A jack of all trades, Hawken has been a crucial blocker and receiver in the Spartans’ offense the past three seasons since moving from linebacker under former head coach John L. Smith.

“The mood of the fullback is just to get an opportunity to get on the field,” Hawken said. “As long as I can be out there and contributing and getting my job done so we can win games, that’s really all that matters — winning games.”

Hawken has been MSU’s go-to fullback in his three years at the position. This season, he’s set a career high in receptions with 12 and caught a four-yard touchdown against Purdue, his first of the season.

“I know on that play I’m the first read, so as soon as it was called, I was thinking this might be my only chance in my senior year to get in the end zone, so as soon as I caught it I wasn’t going to let anybody stop me from getting in,” he said.

But so much of what Hawken does flies under the radar.

“Andrew Hawken and what he’s been able to do, really in the three years here he’s been a fullback, he’s a guy that chips guys on pass protection,” MSU head coach Mark Dantonio said. “He’s provided an opportunity to be a receiver at times, we flex him out, move him out, move him around. He gap blocks. He does a lot of things for us. He’s an integral part of our running game in a lot of respects.”

Sophomore quarterback Kirk Cousins said he voted for Hawken as a captain this season because of the leadership be brings. Running backs coach Dan Enos called Hawken a “great leader.”

“He’s a guy we can do a lot of different things with,” Enos said.

“He catches the ball well and he’s really, really developed himself as a blocker. The big thing about Andrew is that he’s very, very smart. He makes great decisions on the field in terms of when things change on the fly about who he’s supposed to block and things like that. He’s a really heady football player and he gives us a lot of flexibility.”

As for what’s in his future, Hawken said he hasn’t looked into it.

“I’ve just been focusing on here so far,” Hawken said.

“I’ll probably take a look at what’s out there and what guys in previous years with similar abilities as me have done and what kind of opportunities they’ve gotten. To be honest, I haven’t give it much thought yet.”

But Dantonio said the fullback is a “key component,” which bodes well for Hawken’s future if he chooses to take a look at professional football.

“(He’s) a very important component,” Dantonio said. “NFL teams use that guy on a constant basis. As a matter of fact, they can’t find the guy anymore. There’s not enough teams that are using him. They’re pretty valuable. You find a good one that can do a lot of things for you, he becomes extremely valuable.”

As for his favorite memory as a Spartan, Hawken said MSU’s 26-20 overtime victory against Michigan this season has to top the list.

“On that last play, being in there and then the celebration in the end zone and running around with the Paul Bunyan Trophy, that was just unbelievable,” he said. “I’ll never forget that.”

And more than likely, every fullback following in Hawken’s footsteps at MSU will be compared to him.

“He’s a team guy. From day one, he bought in. He came over, he keeps his mouth shut, does exactly what he’s supposed to do,” Enos said.

“He’s tough, he’s smart and if we had 105 guys on the team like him, coaching would be a lot easier, I’ll tell you that.”

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