North Texas transfer RB Caleb Hawkins commits to Oklahoma State

North Texas transfer running back Caleb Hawkins will follow coach Eric Morris to Oklahoma State, On3 has learned. He played just one season with the Mean Green and carries three years of eligibility with him to Stillwater.

Hawkins emerged as a true freshman this past season to end the year as the country’s leader in rushing touchdowns with 25. That was in addition to 1,434 yards rushing, which ranked him fifth in the FBS. That helped him to earn a True Freshman All-American selection according to On3.

The RB also proved himself a dynamic pass-catcher with 32 receptions for 370 yards and four more scores. He is a huge addition for the Cowboys, coming in as the No. 8 overall player and No. 2 running back in On3’s transfer portal rankings.

An Oklahoma native, Hawkins played high school football for North Rock Creek in Shawnee, where he was a three-star recruit in the 2025 class. He ranked as the No. 1,466 overall player and No. 29 player in Oklahoma according to the Rivals Industry Ranking, an equally weighted average that utilizes all three major recruiting services.

Caleb Hawkins joins quarterback Drew Mestemaker, his teammate at North Texas, in transferring to OSU to join Morris. They helped the Mean Green to ranks as the No. 1 offense in the FBS this past season and will bring high expectations with them to Stillwater.

The Cowboys are entering a new era coming off of one of the worst seasons in program history in 2025. They finished 1-11 and fired longtime coach Mike Gundy, who is also the winningest coach in program history.

OSU has gone a combined 4-20 over the past two seasons and failed to win a conference game in that span, dropping 18 straight Big 12 matchups. The hope is that the coaching change and these transfer portal additions can inspire a turnaround to get the Cowboys back to competing for Big 12 titles.

Hawkins and Mestemaker are only the first two names to join Oklahoma State through the transfer portal this offseason. However, it will be interesting to see what other names join them, be it former Mean Green players or otherwise.

The Cowboys have a long way to go to fix their issues from this past season, but these additions are a good start. The transfer portal officially opened Jan. 2 and will remain open until Jan. 16.