About eight months ago, then, UW linebacker Derek Watt elected to switch to fullback in an effort to help support his team by adding depth in a position of need. Come this fall, we could see Watt and yet another new position: running back.
The sophomore was one of two primary tailbacks during Saturday’s spring game, racking up 20 yards on five rushes to go along with three receptions for 22 yards and a touchdown. As it turns out, the absence of James White wasn’t the only reason Watt saw reps in the backfield.
“We’ve been kind of using some variation,” Watt said. I was out there today playing a little tailback. I’m kind of working both tailback and fullback in certain situations.”
There is no denying Watt’s natural athletic ability. After switching from defense to offense last season, he appeared in all 14 games at the fullback position. He rushed just two times last year for a total of five yards, but tallied 150 receiving yards on 12 receptions and proved to be a capable in both run blocking as well as pass protection scenarios.
The prospect of Watt moving into what, on paper, appears to be such a deep position is a bit surprising. But, he insists that his reps at running back aren’t a mere experiment. If there ever was a trial period, it’s over, now.
“We didn’t do it out there just to do it out there,” Watt said. “There’ll be times, in certain situations, that you can see me at tailback and in the backfield.”
Though head coach Gary Andersen didn’t go into much detail about Watt’s new role during his postgame press conference on Saturday, the fact that Watt played through a significant injury just to get a few reps speaks volumes.
“I already had a high-ankle sprain from early in spring ball,” Watt said. “I just tried to push through and kind of re-aggravated it again today.”
Watt came up with a bit of a limp after a carry in the first half, but quickly returned to the game and finished out the contest. It’s been an ongoing issue that he hopes to get under control before the onset of fall camp.
“I’ve been doing treatment three times a day with the training staff and they’re great,” Watt said. “It’s just one of those things that kind of nags and takes time. Now that we’re off, hopefully it will heal a little bit faster.”
Whether he lines up at fullback or tailback, Watt believes that his experience on the offensive side of the ball during his freshman campaign will be invaluable to him moving forward. It’s something that he hopes to build on as the 2013 season draws nearer.
“I had quite a few reps and live game experience. That right there is extremely beneficial and coming into spring I felt real good,” Watt said. “Leaving spring, I feel like I got better at a lot of things. The injury kind of held me back a little bit but, other than that, I feel like I improved quite a bit.”
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