Armon Watts putting together historic season at defensive tackle
FAYETTEVILLE — In a class of defensive tackles featuring stars like Ed Oliver, Christian Wilkins and others, a little-known fifth-year senior at Arkansas leads the country in sacks.
Coming into the year with no sacks and having played only 114 snaps in his career, Armon Watts has burst onto the national with seven sacks this season. That is tied with Notre Dame’s Jerry Tillery and Temple’s Michael Dogbe for the most at the position.
“I just took ability, took my God-given tools, took the coaching, took the grinding to a whole other level and it’s paid off,” Watts said. “The key thing about it is being consistent and that’s what I pride myself on.”
There are 21 players with more sacks that Watts, but they all play the more sack-friendly positions of defensive end or outside linebacker. Coming off the edge, it is easier for them to get to opposing quarterbacks.
Things are a little more difficult on the interior for defensive tackles, as they have to fight through double teams and don’t have as much space to work with.
“Most D-tackles, they get (sacks), but they don’t get as many,” Watts said. “When you get there, you have to make the most of it.”
With one more, Watts would crack the UA's single-season top-10 sacks list, which currently features only one defensive tackle. Wayne Martin had 13 sacks in 1988, with single-game UA record five coming in a 21-13 win over Ole Miss.
(Note: Arkansas didn't start keeping track of sacks until the early 1980s, after the likes of All-American defensive tackles Loyd Phillips, Dick Bumpas, Dan Hampton and Jimmy Walker had completed their careers.)
Some of Watts’ teammates - like linebacker De’Jon Harris and safety Kamren Curl - have gone back and watched the film just to see how he’s racked up so many sacks at the position. The thing that sticks out most to Harris is his motor.
“He never gives up,” Harris said. “Even with double-team blocks, he is just giving moves just to get free and working hard for his sacks.”
For Curl, he’s been impressed with how versatile he’s been, whether he’s getting to the quarterback with a move, stunt or just a bull rush.
“Sometimes he’s using a finesse move and sometimes he’s just running through the line,” Curl said. “He really can do it all. It’s his offseason work coming through.”
That offseason work is what many of his teammates have pointed to as being the reason behind his success.
Every time wide receiver La’Michael Pettway came to the football facility to watch film over the summer, Watts was already here studying.
“What I saw from Armon this summer and the training and all that, you could tell something special was coming,” Pettway said. “He stayed here late. I was another guy that was here watching film late, and I would always see Armon, so I actually saw that coming with Armon.”
A lot of attention this season has been on quarterback Ty Storey, who is finally the starting quarterback in his fourth year on campus. When many players at his position probably would have transferred long ago, he stuck it out and finally earned the job.
Because of that, he can relate to the star defensive tackle. Watts was actually a member of Arkansas’ 2014 signing class, a year before Storey arrived, and almost an afterthought in the package deal that also landed four-star offensive tackle Brian Wallace from Christian Brothers College high school in St. Louis.
Now the Razorbacks are reaping the reward of Watts’ determination to stick around and make an impact. Although the outside world may be, Storey said he hasn’t been surprised by the “real quiet” Watts.
“The dude’s a beast,” Storey said. “I mean, he’s been here longer than me, so it’s awesome to see that hard work… To see it finally kind of come out for him and have a breakout year like he is, it’s just awesome.”
Oliver, Wilkins, Alabama’s Quinnen Williams and others will still likely garner most of the attention from NFL Draft analysts, but it’s starting to sink in for Watts that he’s probably found his way onto teams’ draft boards with his 2018 season.
“It’s crazy because it’s all coming at once with the success I’ve had this season,” Watts said. “The NFL was always a dream, but I guess now it’s reality and it’s starting to set in, so I have to take it up a notch.”
Defensive coordinator John Chavis has coached 70 NFL Draft picks during his three decades in the SEC, including 2017 No. 1 overall pick Myles Garrett and 14 other first-rounders, so he knows talent.
When Watts walks off the field after playing Missouri, his home state school that slow played him during the recruiting process, in two weeks, Chavis is convinced it won’t be the final game of his career.
“I don’t think there’s any doubt about that,” Chavis said. “He’s got the body that they’re looking for and certainly we’re pleased with what he’s done for us here.
“I think he’ll finish this season out strong and there will be more football ahead for him, no question.”
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