MOBILE, Ala. – University of South Alabama inside linebacker Davin Hawkins recently sat down with USAJaguars.com to discuss this season, as well as his previous four years with the program.

Hawkins ranks sixth on the Jaguar defense with 33 total tackles, even after missing two games due to injury. The Gadsden, Ala., native has been credited with 1 ½ tackles for loss, one sack, two pass breakups, one fumble recovery and a safety. Hawkins has helped lead the Jaguar defense, which leads the Sun Belt Conference in scoring defense (21.00) and ranks second in total defense (369.14) entering this weekend's contest at Louisiana-Lafayette.

Describe the play from the Georgia Southern game in which you got injured.
"It was a rollout pass. The running back stepped toward me, and I could see the quarterback coming. It looked like he was going to throw it at the last second, so I jumped for the ball. But when I did that the running back hit me in the side of my knee. At that point, I thought it was all over. The first thought that came to my mind was that I was never going to be able to play again. When I got up to walk on it, it was just giving. I got to the sideline and initially the doctors thought everything was alright. But when I put on my helmet to go back on the field and jumped off the table, it just collapsed again. That's when it actually kicked in – I knew I wasn't going to be back that game and didn't know if I would ever be able to get back out there. You never know when your last play will come. You play this game since you were five or six years old, then all of a sudden the lights are cut out just like that."

What was it like to run back onto the field a few weeks after your injury?
"Words can't explain it; it brought tears to my eyes. It wasn't just everything I overcame with the injury, but everything I have overcome to be back on the field. I've sat through so much, and I just pressed through and told myself that God is going to make a way. When my time to play came, it was the best feeling in the world. But when I got injured, everything was cut off. It's the same game, but it means a lot more to me now since I had to sit out."

What was the transition like from tight end to inside linebacker?
"My brother (former Jaguar David) used to get in the backyard with our pads and lay on the ground, then get up and just hit each other. I love hitting. That's the only thing I ever loved doing because that's all David and I would ever do. It seemed like that was all football was about – that's why I love defense so much. I'm applying the force, I'm not getting it applied to me. I feel like I am in control out there. When they first moved me to tight end, I wasn't thrilled but you have to take it as an opportunity to get on the field. It doesn't matter where you are if you are on the field. So I embraced the role, and then God put me in another situation so I embraced it. When I moved to linebacker and I saw what I did the first spring practice without full knowledge of (defensive coordinator) Coach (Travis) Pearson's defense, I knew I could help make plays. It (linebacker) was what I imagined as a little kid. My aunt told me one day that whatever you want to be or want to do one day, write it down on a sheet of paper and put it in your Bible. Three years ago, before I was moved to linebacker, I wrote down that I wanted to be the quarterback of the defense. It's almost overwhelming when you set a goal like that and you can see it come to fruition."

What was your experience at USA like early on in your career?
"Luckily I was blessed with my big brother being here with me. He has always been undersized, no one has ever really gave him a chance. But he always reminded me that you have to keep working and push through it because you are going to reap what you sow. You just have to keep your head down and keep on pressing through it. He preached that to me every day. I used to sit in my room and get so frustrated. He reminded me that I am not in control of the situation, and just had to keep working and something would eventually happen. I thank the Lord that he got to come here with me, because I truthfully don't think I would have made it to this point without him."

What was the experience like of playing Division I football with your brother?
"Words can't even explain what it was like to be out there on the field with my brother. He was the star running back in pee-wee football, and I was the offensive lineman. Then when we got to the next level, I played quarterback and he was the running back. I have always played with him. And when I signed here, he decided he wanted to transfer here to play. He left his scholarship to come be down here with me – that told me how much he cared about me. Once he did that, I knew we were about to make something happen down here. And maybe it didn't pan out the way we wanted it to, but I feel like we made something happen. He always tells me when I call him that he is playing through me every day; he feels like he is out there playing with me every game he watches. I see him after every game, and he just has the biggest smile on his face. I feel like he is out there with me now."

What made you decide to commit to Kentucky out of high school?
"I had a lot of interest from a lot of different schools, but after I tore my ACL going into my junior year the calls kind of stopped. South Alabama and Kentucky kept calling though. I took a visit to Kentucky, and playing in the SEC is a kid's dream. All I could see was SEC. I committed and felt like that was where I wanted to be, but then they had a coaching change and told me they would no longer honor the scholarship offer. But once again here comes my brother. New Mexico State offered him a scholarship out of high school, but when signing day came they told him they wouldn't honor his offer either. Luckily, he ended up getting a full scholarship to a school that doesn't give full rides. So when my scholarship got pulled, he called and told me that it was nothing. He told me to go visit South Alabama, so I called Coach (Brian) Turner and acted like he just won the lottery when I talked to him. He turned my whole day around when he told me they wanted me down here. When I heard that, I knew something good was going to happen down here."

How often does your family get to see you play?
"My mom and dad will be at every game, it wouldn't matter if I was playing in Australia. They told me they weren't going to be able to make it to the Kent State game this year. It was my first college start, but they didn't tell me they were coming. They wanted to surprise me. When I came out to get taped (before the game), they were standing out there waiting on me. It doesn't matter where I play, my parents are going to be at the game. They are going to support me wherever I go."

How have you developed as a person and a player during your time at South Alabama?
"Coming down here and going through these hardships, I always had my faith and believed that God was going to push me through everything. I wanted everything to come together and happen right away, but God has shown me more through these trials and tribulations. When I came here, God had to humble me as a man. I feel like he had to break me down to bring me up."

How has (inside linebackers) Coach (Mike) Adams helped you improve as a player?
"He already sees my potential but sees the rawness in it. I love how he breaks everything down to the simplest step and shows you why you have to do certain things. His whole motto is you have to play inside this defense. Coach Adams is a technician, and when we go into the film room we're not going to watch what you did right. We're going to watch what you did wrong and work on that."

What are your strengths as a linebacker?
"I feel like my strength is knowledge of the game. From playing on both sides of the football, I feel like I have knowledge that someone who has only played defense their whole life doesn't have. I played quarterback and running back in high school, so I can see what they are seeing. I feel like my overall football knowledge and athleticism is what has helped me the most."

What does the defense need to continue to do to finish the year strong?
"We just have to play within the defense. The defense works. If you run this defense, it will work. Don't try to make all the plays, and that's where I get in trouble some too. I'm trying to make every single play, but you just have to consistently do your job in this defense. When we get consistent in that, I don't feel like there isn't a team in America that can score on us. We just have to play consistent down the stretch – have consistency in performance. If we keep doing that, then everything else will take care of itself."

What do you want to do when your football career is over?
"I'm just living in this moment. I don't want it to end. I know when it does it's going to hit me hard, but I'm not trying to worry about anything else because I want to make everything of this moment. I can't tell you what I'm going to do tomorrow, because I may not be here tomorrow. But I know I was on the football field today, and I know I will be in the film room this evening, God willing, to watch myself on film."

Do you want to stay involved with football after you are done playing?
"My dad used to tell me that the clock is going to stop one day and I will have to do something with my life. My dream last year was to be an athletic director somewhere in the country or work with my dad at Alabama Power. But my brother is coaching middle school football after he gets off of work. When I see pictures of him on the sideline, it looks like he is having the time of his life."

What do you like to do in your spare time?
"I watch football. I have a girlfriend who plays basketball here, and I hang out with her. I also hang out with my best friend, Terrance Slaughter. I'm always with him. He's been with me through thick and thin since he got here. But I'm simple. It's school and football, and when you get some spare time you get some sleep. I like watching movies. Netflix is my friend."

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