Oklahoma might regret their Mike Hawkins Jr. decision after WVU's hot start

In the transfer portal era, one team's loss can be another one's gain. That seems to be the case for the West Virginia Mountaineers with quarterback Mike Hawkins Jr. just two games into the 2026 season.

Put an asterisk next to it if you'd like, given the competition. But Hawkins Jr. has looked nothing short of elite in his first two games in the old-gold-and-blue. On Saturday against UT-Martin,he went 5-for-7 passingfor 155 yards and two touchdowns. He also added six carries for 96 yards and two touchdowns.

So far this season, he's 16-for-21 for 287 passing yards and three touchdowns, and has also added 26 carries for 199 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. The Mountaineers are 2-0 entering Week 3. But unfortunately for his former team, there are a few more concerns at signal caller than the West Virginia seems to currently have.

Mike Hawkins Jr. excels at West Virginia while John Mateer struggles for Oklahoma

As a freshman at Oklahoma, Mike Hawkins Jr. battled with Jackson Arnold for the starting role, playing in seven games and starting four. Last year, he mostly backed up John Mateer, who was recruited by the Sooners out of the transfer portal. So with Mateer coming back this season for another go-round, Oklahoma decided to let Hawkins walk when he entered the transfer portal.

But while Hawkins Jr. is shining for West Virginia, things aren't going as well at Oklahoma. The Sooners were defeated on Saturday by a Michigan team who needed a a favorable referee ruling and a Hail Mary to defeat MAC opponent Western Michigan. Mateer went 17-for-33 passing for 189 yards, one touchdown, and one interception while adding 45 yards on the ground.

And perhaps the Sooners are beginning to regret their decision to let Hawkins Jr. walk away from the program and enter the portal after last season. Hawkins Jr. looks exceptional for the Mountaineers, while Mateer's performance against Michigan indicates he may not have developed into the quarterback Oklahoma expected him to this offseason.

Of course, it might not be a fair comparison, given that the Mountaineers have not played a Power 4 opponent such as Michigan yet, and there's no guarantee that Hawkins Jr. will continue to perform at such a high level once West Virginia does step up to a higher level of competition.

But there are certainly plenty of early reasons for the Sooners to be doubting whether they made the right choice with Mike Hawkins Jr., and if he can help West Virginia upset a Top 25 opponent Virginia next week, that doubt will surely continue to grow.

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