Building Connections: Jo Jo Hawkins

By Craig Sachson
PrincetonTigersFootball.com

Jo Jo Hawkins is a few days away from the Ivy League opener of his senior season, and it's been a wild, winding road to get here. From an injury that never fully healed to a collegiate career that didn't truly begin until his second year, Hawkins has kept one focus in his mind — keep working, your time will come.

A multi-sport athlete who grew up in Anaheim, Calif., Hawkins fully dedicated himself to football midway through his time at Orange Lutheran High School. Like many West Coast football standouts, he originally dreamed of playing at one of the PAC-12, Mountain West or other Power 5 programs. A message from Princeton piqued his interest, though.

"I started to look Princeton up and realized it was the best of both worlds," Hawkins said. "I can get a great education from the No. 1 school in the world, and also play great football. When I visited here, I saw the numbers they were putting up, and I realized this could be a great fit for me."

Strong bonds with the coaching staff and an early comfort with living on the East Coast made the decision even easier for Hawkins, even if he didn't actually get to live in the East as early as he would have liked. The COVID pandemic caused the cancellation of his freshman football season (2020), and he spent his earliest days as a remote student.

He was able to build connections through remote means, and he had a fantastic role model in his older brother, Jaylinn, currently a defensive back for the Atlanta Falcons.

"Him making it to the NFL made it clear that it was possible for me," said Jo Jo, who is three years younger than Jaylinn. "I saw how hard he worked. I woke up every day and worked out with him. He pushed me. He stays on me, telling me what the NFL and college coaches are looking for. He watches my games today and critiques me, telling me the little stuff I need to do to get better."

He would connect with another NFL-bound player while he played in seven games as a sophomore during the 2021 season. Fellow wide receiver Andrei Iosivas was a league standout in 2021, and then a national one the following season. Classmate Dylan Classi was hitting some of the top Princeton receiver milestones on his own. Combined, the duo caught 203 passes for 3,128 yards during the 2021 and 2022 seasons, which doesn't exactly leave a lot more room for other targets.

Hawkins, however, was earning his share. He followed the lead of Jacob Birmelin and turned himself into a dangerous slot receiver for the 2022 season. He caught 19 passes for 130 yards and a touchdown over the first four games and was turning into a real threat for an offense that averaged more than 28 points per game over that stretch.

One play into Game 5, everything changed. A knee injury cost him the rest of the season, but the rehab process also showed that an ACL injury he suffered as a junior at Orange Lutheran never fully healed properly. A 10-month rehab process followed, but Hawkins now has a fully healthy knee for the first time in more than five years.

"I didn't know I didn't have my ACL, so I thought it was a normal knee all along," Hawkins said. "Now that I have the strength in my knee, I can feel more power and more stability there."

Hawkins participated in all of three practices before making his return to the field two weeks ago at San Diego, where he caught four passes for 45 yards in a 23-12 road win. There was little offense to be found during miserable weather conditions last weekend, but Hawkins feels like the best is coming. Part of that comes from the connection he has already developed with starting quarterback Blake Stenstrom.

"We came in as the future offense, but we had to play a backup role with other guys in front of us," he said. "But we started to build a connection, and that grew through the preseason and the first four games last year. We're rebuilding it back right now, and as the games go on, the speed and ball placement will come together."

While the connection Hawkins is referring to is specific to the quarterback-receiver, it is his connection to the full team that has impressed Surace the most.

"JoJo is just a great teammate," he said. "He is a terrific player, but in addition to talent I love how he's such a positive influence on others. His work ethic is outstanding — he exceeded every recovery time range I was given this summer — and his intelligence and route running are super high level traits."

Hawkins has pushed to become the best version of himself this season, focusing on becoming a better deep threat and being better after the catch. He has also put effort into his technique as a route runner; the speed and quickness are there, so he knows if he can put the perfect route together, he can have the full package on the field.

If not for the dominant weapons Princeton has had over the last two years — and some bad injury luck — it's likely fans would already have a better sense of Hawkins as a player. The same holds true for many of his teammates. He has worked throughout, been patient, and now the time has come for this Princeton offense.

"It's not much of a fall off," Hawkins said. "As time goes and our young receivers get more of a feel to play college football, I feel like we can still be unstoppable."

Calendar

Upcoming Events

Recent Results

Players Mentioned

Dylan Classi

Jo Jo Hawkins

Andrei Iosivas

Blake Stenstrom

Upcoming Events

Recent Results

Princeton University Athletics