WR’s Martin, Watkins prove experience is no barrier
Coming out of spring ball, the Aggies thought they had it all figured out at wide receiver. Junior Stanley Morrison, who led the team with 616 yards and three touchdowns in 2009, looked primed to become one of the Western Athletic Conference’s most explosive players, while former junior college star Matt Austin seemed to have solidified his role as a go-to pass-catcher.
Heading into week two of the season, the prospects for monster years out of Morrison and Austin are a distant memory. But the prospects for a productive year out of the Aggie receivers, however, are not.
Matt Austin’s second-quarter knee injury against Oklahoma on Saturday couldn’t have come at a worse time in the season. After all, it was Austin who was supposed to be the replacement for Morrison, who himself suffered a season-ending injury during a swimming accident earlier in the summer. Down 21-0 to Oklahoma and without their top-two wide receivers, hopes of a comeback would have to come on the quick feet and sure hands of a previously untested duo of wide receivers who arrived in Logan only eight months ago.
Xavier Martin and Dontel Watkins were up to the challenge.
Stepping in for the injured Austin, Watkins and Martin helped spark USU’s dramatic second-half comeback, matching up against some of the best defensive backs in the country to combine for 151 yards and two touchdowns through the air. Not a bad way for two junior college transfers to begin their Division I college football careers.
“They did a tremendous job and to see those two JUCO (junior college) kids come in and catch a football and make plays was great,” said USU head coach Gary Andersen after the game. “It was great to see them do that today and put themselves in position to become a better football players.
“They are going to be a big part of this football team as we move forward,” he said.
Not that the USU coaches weren’t expecting Martin and Watkins to play significant roles in the Aggie offense coming into the year. Ever since spring ball, when both receivers ran sub-4.5 second 40-yard dashes, the buzz around both Watkins and Martin has been high. Yet their role was supposed to be supplementary in 2010, and neither could have guessed that they would be thrust into the spotlight against the nation’s seventh-ranked team in the opener.
They responded just the same. Down 21-3 late in the second quarter, Watkins snagged a 34-yard pass to set up a four-yard Michael Smith touchdown plunge. The 6’2” sophomore receiver later caught a 42-yard pass from USU quarterback Diondre Borel for a touchdown. Watkins made a great spin-move in the open field after the catch, then outraced the defense for the score.
With OU responding on their next two series’ to extend the lead to 31-17, it was Martin’s turn to step up. The quick-footed Maryland native lived up to his offseason hype by getting behind the OU defense for a 31-yard touchdown catch, proving that talented athletes don’t just play for the big-name schools.
According to Borel, it was the speed of the two receivers which allowed them to help spark USU’s near upset.
“Those guys have a lot of speed. They’re both downfield threats and they made big plays,” he said.
In addition to Martin and Watkins, USU received a boost from Sophomore Mikhail Morgan, who had four catches for 44 yards against OU. The play of Watkins and Martin will be particularly important for USU moving forward, although the Aggies don’t plan on becoming just a two-man show at receiver for the rest of the season.
“Other young men need to step up and make plays,” Andersen said. He went on to say that he won’t consider any position changes or pulling current redshirts to bolster the wide receiver corps, but he will be looking for several other untested backups to make an immediate impact. Among the players Andersen will look to are redshirt-freshman Travis Van Leeuwen, junior Austin Alder, and freshmen Emmanual Ojeriakhi and Rashard Stewart.
“There are still enough young men out (at receiver) that can play and do something for us,” said Andersen. “Travis Van Leeuwen will have an opportunity to step up and play more and we’ll see how he fits. Austin Alder – this is an opportunity for him to get himself back in the mix and do some things. And OJ (Ojeriakhi) is another one with an opportunity but they have to show it in practice to get on the field.”
Andersen and his staff aren’t asking players to replace Morrison and Austin, but rather to be the best players they can be with their limited experience.
“All we can do is continue to work with the young men in the program and let them know that it is their time to do their best and that is all we ask for,” Andersen said. “They don’t have to replace a great player, just be as a good a player as we can be.”
And if the best player they can be is anything close to what they showed against Oklahoma, Martin, Watkins, and the other USU receivers have a bright future ahead of them.
–adamnettina@gmail.com