Up next in our SDSU / NFL Prospect list is the one of a kind, fierce competitor CB Tayler Hawkins. Tayler switched from the safety position to the corner in his final senior season at San Diego State and rose to the challenge. All season long he was a playmaker and really grew his game to the next level in this record setting Aztecs defense.
Not many guys have more fun on the field than Tayler. You can easily see that he is in his element when on the field hitting people, competing, jawing with the opponent and dissecting what the offense is trying to do. The confidence is off the charts with Hawkins and the young man is hungry to make his name known at the pro level.
CB Tayler Hawkins
6’1″, 205 lbs. Palm Springs, CA
PICK SIX FOR TAYLER HAWKINS @AztecFB
Originally tweeted by CBS Sports Network (@CBSSportsNet) on January 15, 2022.
| Year | School | Conf | Class | Pos | G | Solo | Ast | Tot | Loss | Sk | Int | Yds | Avg | TD | PD | FR | Yds | TD | FF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| *2017 | San Diego State | MWC | SO | CB | 4 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| *2018 | San Diego State | MWC | SO | CB | 12 | 19 | 16 | 35 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | |||
| *2019 | San Diego State | MWC | JR | CB | 9 | 18 | 12 | 30 | 3.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2020 | San Diego State | MWC | SR | S | 8 | 24 | 13 | 37 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | ||
| *2021 | San Diego State | MWC | SR | CB | 13 | 48 | 14 | 62 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 2 | 34 | 17.0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 1 | ||
| Career | San Diego State | 112 | 57 | 169 | 5.0 | 0.0 | 3 | 34 | 11.3 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 1 |
Coach C: One thing when you enter into an interview the more you can talk about yourself—I can do this and I can do this—If you need me to do this I am not only wiling, but have the capability to do so. Tayler Hawkins can walk into any interview and he can talk to you about the safety position and how to read the box—the O-Line box. How to run a cover 3, or cover 2. How to guard a tight end if he needed to. How to lay a hat, how to fill a box or fill a hole in the run game.
And then Tayler can talk about another skill that he has. He can go to the outside of the hashes and cover a receiver. To display trying to guard a guy with fluid hips and a little bit of speed who has a little bit of change of direction in him and have that ability. And fortunately for Tayler he’s blessed with size, athleticism and boy is he a finisher. He is definitely a finisher. His film pops. There aint gonna be much selling what he needs to do, when it comes to the obvious plays that he’s shown on the film.
The question Tayler’s gonna get now are where are your eyes at. What are you looking for. He’s gonna have to communicate that—this is what i’m looking for, this is the angle and why I took this angle. NFL Coaches they all definitely find ways to ask questions that maybe you might not be prepared for. But what helps out Tayler when you’ve played the position as a DB and you’ve played the position as a safety, is that both positions are in the secondary but they are completely different. Their eyes are in different spots and different positions.
As much man coverage that SDSU ran, your eyes are going to be reading the receiver as a cornerback. Is he blocking me, is he trying to run the slant, a fade or a hitch on me.
Where as in the safety position there’s a whole different preview that you’ve got to see. Where’s the tight end located at, whats the box doing with the OL. Am I seeing high hats in a pass concept or are they pass protecting so I know where my drop is in coverage. Are they run blocking so i get in my run positions now.
So for Tayler its gonna be a real positive tool in his tool belt to go ahead and talk that through and because how much he can talk about it, its also going to give him a chance because he’s there longer. There’s more he can talk about and sell himself. Any team in the league is going to be very lucky to have a guy that brings so much versatility.
Click below for the FULL Tayler Hawkins video analysis w/Coach C only on SOM TV!
