Hawkins: 'I don't wish that upon anybody'

Teresa Varley
Steelers.com

As Jerald Hawkins watched the 2016 NFL Draft, he wished there was a special person beside him.

As a kid, he always watched the draft with his father, Warren Hawkins. The two would talk about the players selected, and father would tell son that one day that would be him.

But when Hawkins’ time came, when it was his moment to be selected in the NFL Draft, the man that meant the most to him wasn’t there.

Warren Hawkins died of a heart attack in 2012 at just 55 years old. He wasn’t around to know that his son, the big offensive tackle from LSU, was selected by the Steelers in the fourth-round of the NFL Draft. But his son, he knew his father was there in spirit, something that helped guide him through it all.

“I remember when I was younger we would always watch the draft and he would say you are going to get that one day,” said Hawkins. “It finally came true. Once I got that call, all I could do is thank God and thank him for all he did for me.”

READ MORE: http://www.steelers.com/news/article-1/Hawkins-I-dont-wish-that-upon-anybody/88584c0d-6901-42b7-8848-4371939bdf7a

You read stories like that and you can't help but pull for the kid.

Hoping this kid pans out to be yet another gem in our deep corps of offensive lineman. He'll have Munchak, and Faneca to learn from going into this season, he's not going to get any better tutelage than that.