As predicted by Mississippi State beat reporters, Nathaniel “Bookie” Watson has been named the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Defensive Player of the Week for his performance against Arkansas.
In what was a defensive showdown that resulted in the Bulldogs winning 7-3, Watson led the team with 14 tackles and two sacks. It was his 14th career game with double-digit tackles.
𝗦𝗘𝗖 𝗗𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗪𝗲𝗲𝗸@Nathaniel_ATH had himself a game!
✅ Season-high 14 tackles
✅ 2 sacks
✅ Earned his 300th career tackle#HailState🐶 pic.twitter.com/4JeqzuTTnn— Mississippi State Football (@HailStateFB) October 23, 2023
Watson, who now has over 300 tackles in his career, is near the top of the SEC in multiple statistical categories this season, including second in tackles (71) and sacks (7.5). The sixth-year linebacker also leads the conference in fumbles recovered (2).
Watson joins freshman kicker Kyler Ferrie as the only Bulldogs to earn weekly conference awards after Ferrie won SEC Freshman of the Week following his performance against Southeastern Louisiana in week one.
Mississippi State will be back in action Saturday at Auburn. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. CT and will be broadcast on the SEC Network.
