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Roster Rundown: No. 31 Boogie Watson

Boogie Watson committed to Kentucky as a two-star recruit. He's now an All-SEC candidate going into his redshirt senior season.

He's next up in Cats Illustrated's Roster Rundown series.

Background: Watson attended Bishop McNamara High School in Maryland and he was not one of the more heralded players from Kentucky's 2016 signing class. He didn't even play football until two years before he arrived at Kentucky. What Watson has always had is a high level of athletic ability, and that was recognized even as he was regarded as a developmental prospect.

Watson had 36 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, and 6.5 sacks as a junior for Kentucky last season. He was one reason Kentucky's defense did not have the kind of drop-off some feared.

He has 18 starts over Kentucky's last two seasons of play.

2020 Outlook: As the SEC's top returning sack masters Watson now has big expectations both in terms of the coaches and fan base but also across the league. Maybe the Josh Allen comparison is a high bar but the coaches have not shied away from it.

Brad White told Cats Illustrated earlier this offseason that Allen's rise in production from his junior to senior season was about continuing to work on his body. Watson's goal has to be turning his very large number of pressures into more sacks. White put together a film package for Watson to study so they could go over how to make that happen so the goal has been set.

And what is the goal? Probably in the ballpark of double-digit sacks, and to become one of the league's true star performers.

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