LB Watson steps up game after his mentors depart
FORT COLLINS» As Saturday became Sunday, the game was not out of reach for either side.
Nevada had failed to regain the lead with a missed field goal. Colorado State squandered a red-zone chance, first failing to corral a touchdown pass, then missing a field goal of its own.
Now the Wolf Pack had the ball and had reached the CSU 33-yard line, needing all of two plays to do so and regrouping with a fresh set of downs. Even on fourthand-11, the game was nowhere near out of reach for a Nevada passing game that had produced 508 yards.
But neither was Nevada quarterback Ty Gangi’s elbow. It was not too far away for CSU’s Josh Watson to reach with his right hand, not even while being pushed away by a double team, to force the incompletion to seal the 44-42 victory.
“It was knowing my responsibility, knowing it’s the last play of the game, knowing I’ve got to make a play and laid it on the line,” said Watson, who has become pretty adept at knowing what the Rams are going to need this season.
The 6-foot-2, 240-pound junior is living up to his role as the Rams’ middle linebacker, leading the team with 42 tackles during a season where he has led or tied for the team lead in tackles five of seven games.
He also paces the defense with six passes defended, has created a fumble, recovered another and intercepted a pass. What coach Mike Bobo sees is a player who has had his instincts return and take over.
He has also been spot on in the locker room.
As the 2016 calendar was replaced with 2017, it was expected the loss Kevin Davis’ leadership from the spot would transfer over to Deonte Clyburn, returning after missing the season with a blood-clot ailment. But when it was announced Clyburn would be out again this season, there wasn’t a void to fill.
Watson’s in-your-face style was going to be a needed element for a still-developing group. Basically, the defense had gained a year under its belt as a whole, but improvements were still needed.
That was going to require work, and Watson was going to insist upon it, first from himself, then from his teammates. Even if Clyburn were healthy, Watson didn’t see a different role than the one he has currently.
“We both have that dog mentality, that instinct, that alpha-male type of mindset, and I think having two guys out there with the same mind-set, guys are going to feed off that,” Watson said.
Last year, Bobo felt Watson was robotic at times. Now, his game flows more readily to the ball, lessons he learned from his mentors. Neither of those two is on the field with him any more, but that doesn’t matter. He says they are still in his head.
“They were always telling me I could be so good and all this, that all I had to do is apply myself to continue to watch film and continue to know what my job is, that’s going to allow me to play faster, and the plays are going to come,” Watson said. “I watch film all the time. I watch film every night. I watch film in class when I know I’m supposed to be paying attention to class. I take watching film and studying my opponent to be very important. That just gives me an advantage to play a lot faster on Saturday.”
“He got ready to play physically better than I thought he did last year,” Bobo said. “Josh is in the best shape he’s ever been since I’ve been here.”