South County senior kicker Garrett Watson winced as he saw the football pushing right of the goal post in the first half of last week’s game against Lee. It is a feeling every kicker deals with — some more often than others. But it had been a while since Watson had seen one of his kicks miss the mark.
Let’s just say he knows how to rebound.
Watson took some razzing from friends. But his teammates know better than to mess with a kicker. They just left him alone to sort things out and he responded by drilling a 30-yard field goal and a career-best 49-yarder goal in a 7-6 loss to the Lancers.
After an offseason spent honing his skills at camps and clinics and working with local kicking coach Paul Woodside, Watson has put natural talent and mechanics together to become one of the area’s top kickers.
“I expect to make kicks. I know what my range is and I’m confident I can make those kicks,” said Watson, who has also worked with West Springfield coach Bill Renner, a former NFL punter. “But just the fact that our coaching staff is willing to have me try [long] kicks helps. If they believe in me, why shouldn’t I believe in myself?”
Watson has hit field goals of 40, 41, 47 and 49 yards in four games for South County (3-1) entering tonight’s Patriot District contest vs. Lake Braddock (2-2). He is 4-for-4 from over 40 yards and 5-for-6 overall. The 35-yard miss vs. Lee was Watson’s first since last season. The stellar start hasn’t resulted in much more than letters from college recruiters. But Watson knows if it continues they will have to take notice. He has worked out with former West Springfield kicker Josh Czjakowski, who last fall earned a scholarship to kick at North Carolina State.
“That would be the top of the mountain for me,” Watson said. “To kick at a big Division I school is something that every kicker dreams about.”
Elementary, Watson
» Watson made six of 10 field goals and 10 of 11 extra points last season.
» Watson spent his first two years at Potomac, where he played soccer through his sophomore season.
» Through four games, 16 of Watson’s 21 kickoffs have resulted in touchbacks.
