Levelle attended local elementary schools and graduated from Edison High School. He was selected as a Parade All-American as one of the nation’s most recruited wide receivers. He gained more than 1,000 yards receiving and 800 yards rushing as a senior, when he was named the Stockton Record’s player of the year. He caught 53 passes for almost 1,000 yards and 12 touchdowns
as a junior, and collected 75 tackles, 4 interceptions, 3 forced fumbles and 2 sacks at free safety. Rivals.com ranked him the No.4 athlete and No.73 overall player in the United States and pegged him the No.10 overall player in the state of California.
After high school, he attended LSU but later transferred to Community College of San Francisco (CCSF) in the spring of 2004. At CCSF Lavelle was selected as a Super Prep All American as he hauled in 23 passes for 525 yards and 4 touchdowns in only 7 games. He ranked 7th in the state in punt returns in 2004, averaging 15.0 yards on 9 attempts.
Lavelle then attended the University of California, Berkeley on a scholarship. He was an All-Pac 10 second team selection and rated as the number 1 senior receiver in the country by ESPN’s Mel Kiper. Lavelle led the Bears with 72 catches and 872 receiving yards. With his accomplishments on the field and his special academic commitment and improvement, Lavelle was awarded the Dink Artal Award.
He closed out his college career and was ranked 10th all-time in receptions (136) and 11th in receiving touchdowns (12) at Berkeley despite playing just 3 seasons after transferring from CCSF.
Lavelle was selected to the Senior Bowl in 2008 and finished the game with 3 catches for a game-high 63 yards, including a 36-yard touchdown catch. He participated at the NFL Scouting Combine.
Lavelle was selected by the Tennessee Titans as the 126th overall pick in the 4th round of the 2008 NFL draft. Lavelle was the only wide receiver the Titans selected in the 2008 draft. During 5 seasons with Titans, Hawkins caught 71 receptions for 771 yards. His most productive season was in 2011 when he played in all 16 games and caught 47 passes for 470 yards and 1 touchdown.
Lavelle also played for the following NFL teams: New England Patriots, San Francisco 49ers, San Diego Chargers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and BC Lions.
Lavelle Hawkins is currently the wide receivers’ coach/director of football operations at his alma mater, Edison High School in Stockton California. During his time coaching Edison has won the SJAA League Championship title for 6 straight years, starting from 2018-2023. Edison now has moved to the TCAL Division 1 League, where they placed 2nd for the 2024 season.
Lavelle Hawkins, alongside his childhood friend Tim Brown, co-founded the Factory Institute of Training in Stockton, California, with the mission of providing comprehensive athletic development to young athletes in the community. Through this initiative, Hawkins has helped shape and elevate countless athletes by offering training programs that focused not just on physical skills, but on recovery, nutrition, mindset, and overall well-being.
