Get to Know Your Orange Man: #22, RB Deston Hawkins

It’s time to start preparing for the upcoming Syracuse Orange football season. We’re going through the roster to take a look at each Syracuse player as we get ready for a critical season for the Orange.

Up next is….

Name: Deston Hawkins

Position: Running back

Year: Sophomore

Height: 6’0”

Weight: 200 lbs

Hometown: Menlo Park, CA

High School/Previous College: Menlo Atherton (Foothill College)

2022 stats: Hawkins finished with 137 carries, 1,164 total rushing yards (8.5 yards per carry) and 18 touchdowns in a standout season with Foothill in 2022. He also showed some promise as a pass-catcher with six receptions for 95 yards and a touchdown.

2023 projections: Hawkins joins a loaded running back room. Hawkins will likely enter this season behind Allen and Price, but he’ll definitely get some reps early in the season as Allen plays himself back into shape before Syracuse’s schedule starts to ramp up in October.

How’d he get here?: Hawkins suited up for his freshman year in 2022 after redshirting the year before. He committed to the Orange in late-May over offers from UT-El Paso, Northern Arizona and Idaho.

What’d recruiting sites say?: Three stars on 247sports

Twitter feed: @destonHONCHO

Instagram feed: @deston4greatness

Instagram/Twitter posts of wonder: Bonus points for extra highlights to admire:

Interesting nugget o’interest: Hawkins will be known for his speed after staring for both his high school football and track teams, even helping his team reach the 2018 California 3-AA Championship during his senior year.

Let’s get a look at ya: Let’s roll out the JUCO tape: