In a tearful interview, Coleman Hawkins says social media hurt him badly at K-State
No one inside the Kansas State locker room took a season-ending loss to Baylor at the Big 12 Tournament harder than Coleman Hawkins.
The senior forward buried his face under his shirt after head coach Jerome Tang spoke with the team and then fought back tears throughout the entirety of his postgame interview with reporters.
“I’m sorry for crying, but (expletive) this hurts,” Hawkins said after K-State lost to Baylor 70-56 on Wednesday at T-Mobile Center. “I really wanted to come in and impact the program. Some of the stuff, and this outcome, obviously wasn’t what we wanted.
“If someone asked me if I regret coming here, I don’t regret being a part of this team, the coaching staff and the people I met. My heart just breaks for (my teammates) because they haven’t experienced some of the things I experienced in my career.”
Hawkins wanted to lead the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament when he transferred in from Illinois for an NIL deal worth an unprecedented $2 million. He was a postseason regular when he played for the Fighting Illini and wanted to taste March Madness one last time before he turned pro.
He wanted it so badly that he refused to give up on the dream, even when the Wildcats entered the Big 12 Tournament with a losing record. If any team in the country could pull off a championship run in Kansas City, he said, it was K-State.
They won their first game, thanks to a season-high 26 points from Hawkins. He genuinely believed he could stay hot and the Wildcats could keep winning. But they were no match for the Bears in Round 2.
Hawkins only scored five points against Baylor. He blamed himself for the loss, plus many others this season when he was quiet.
The talented big man averaged 10.9 points, 6.9 rebounds and 4.4 assists during his lone season in Manhattan. He was one of the best players on the K-State roster and a great addition during the offseason. But many will argue he did not play up to the standards of a $2 million man.
Hawkins was reminded of that almost daily on social media. And he blames that for many of his shortcomings in a purple uniform.
“I let a lot of people down,” Hawkins said. “I feel like I did a poor job of letting people talk about me. It affected my play and it was evident all year. I wish I could just go back and block out everything, not for myself but for the team so we could have had a more successful year.”
This isn’t the first time Hawkins has mentioned how much it bothers him that he receives hateful messages on social media. Following a non-conference loss to Drake, he pointed out that someone sent him a message on Instagram that read: “I hope you break your leg.”
He doubled down on his disdain this week when someone asked what message he has for the Wildcats as they move forward without him.
“Stay away from social media and work as hard as you can,” Hawkins said. “Don’t worry about anything else besides what’s going on in the locker room and on the court. If you do that, you’ll have success.”
Hawkins went on to explain why it was difficult for him to ignore his phone, even though social media was negatively affecting his life. He said he didn’t have many friends in Manhattan outside of the K-State basketball team. He wasn’t surrounded by the same support system he enjoyed during his four seasons playing at Illinois.
He had more down time than he was used to, and he spent much of it scrolling through his phone.
“If I could go back, man, I’d definitely do some things differently,” Hawkins said. “It’s just hard when you have expectations. It feels like everything falls back on you, like there’s a spotlight on you. Maybe that’s just me painting a picture in my head, but it’s just hard.”
Hawkins was asked if things would have been easier for him if his agents hadn’t publicized the value of his NIL deal when he agreed to transfer to K-State.
“For sure,” he said. “One hundred percent.”
K-State fans may have been slow to warm up to Hawkins, but he began to earn their respect late in the season when he helped the Wildcats win six straight conference games. Then he gave them a boost by playing the final four games of his K-State career with a fractured tibia.
He was all in for the Wildcats, and he was emotional when the season came to an end without a trip to March Madness.
K-State coach Jerome Tang hopes fans remember him for that.
“It’s just the greatest feeling to hear and see how much he cares,” Tang said. “This dude could have shut it down, right? He has a legitimate injury, but he chose to rehab, to come back and to play. He’s still hurt and he’s playing. Man, our fans have got to love that. This kid really, really cares about K-State.”
This story was originally published March 13, 2025 at 6:00 AM with the headline "In a tearful interview, Coleman Hawkins says social media hurt him badly at K-State."