Notre Dame Checks The Boxes For The Watson Family
2019 Grayson (Ga.) defensive back Kenyatta Watson II has seen it all over the last few years, yet the 6-foot-2, 183-pounder was blown away by Notre Dame over the weekend.
Irish Sports Daily caught up with Watson’s father, Kenyatta, for a recap of the visit from his eyes, and things couldn’t have gone better.
“We’ve been to 33 schools over a two and a half year span,” Watson told Irish Sports Daily. “Notre Dame was the first school we have been to that checked every box for me as a parent, coach, mentor or however you want to term it.”
Watson, who manages Grayson’s recruiting and played at Boston College, is experienced with college visits and lets the excitement wear off before speaking with his son.
“What we usually do when we go places, I’ll give him 48 hours before I will ask him any questions about the visit,” explained Watson. “We talked last night for the first time, and he said he was totally caught off guard.
“The visit was beyond his wildest expectations and exceeded his expectations. He told me he didn’t think it’d be like that from the coaches to the people to the tradition.”
Notre Dame hit a grand slam on Junior Day when it comes to impact. The Irish impressed parents and recruits, but it wasn’t just the football program.
“This had to be the closest thing to an official visit you can go on,” stated Watson. “The only difference was that we paid our own way. We had an unbelievable time learning about the academics. We had a 45-minute group conversation with Adam Sargent.
“He was telling us about everything Notre Dame brought to the table and how it’s a worldwide network. It was absolutely unbelievable. As I said, I’ve been to 33 different schools, and I’m a hard sell. We don’t get caught up in the facilities and uniforms. We’re beyond that stage.
“I loved Notre Dame as a parent. I left Notre Dame saying ‘If he told me right now he wanted to commit, I’d give him a double high-five.’”
The academics hit home for the Watson family as they were able to see just how far it can take their son.
“As a parent, you see the 4-for-40 program they have and the opportunities your child would receive,” said Watson. “It’s not just great football, but he would be getting a great education.
“I want the best for my son and as a dad, I know if he went to Notre Dame, his opportunities are endless. Your degree from Notre Dame gets more valuable every year after you graduate.”
While academics were a huge hit, the football program also sold itself on Saturday, but Notre Dame didn’t need a ton of selling for Watson.
“I’m a huge college football fan, and I’ve followed it all my life,” Watson explained. “When you talk about the pantheon of college football, there are only three programs that I really think of from a power standpoint and its Notre Dame, Ohio State and Texas.
“I know a lot of people will say Alabama is No. 1, but those three programs, they are what college football is about. College football isn’t the same when Notre Dame isn’t winning.”
Watson was on the ’93 Boston College team that left South Bend with a victory, but walking on the field for the second time was just as impressive.
“It was crazy because when you step on the field, you feel the ghosts of the past,” recalled Watson. “You feel the tradition, the big games and everything that has taken place in the long history of Notre Dame.
“The tunnel from the locker room hasn’t changed. It still has that smell and the old feeling. Things you grew up watching. You’re there. It was absolutely amazing.”
Head coach Brian Kelly was able to speak to the family, and his message was simple.
“I tried to stay in the background and let it be about Kenyatta,” Watson said. “We had a long talk with coach Kelly and he was very honest and straightforward about his expectations and the opportunity to come in and play.”
Running backs coach Autry Denson and Watson were childhood friends in South Florida, but the Georgia natives felt Denson words weren’t enough to prepare them for what they experienced.
“He had already told me everything about what Notre Dame stood for, but it didn’t do it justice,” Watson stated.
However, it was Notre Dame’s cornerbacks coach that might have made the most significant impact.
“Todd Lyght being potentially his position coach, a guy that has accomplished everything Kenyatta is looking for accomplish,” said Watson. “The biggest thing that blew me away was that coach Lyght paid back his scholarship to Notre Dame.
“It showed me he’s a guy of integrity and high moral standards. As a dad, you’re turning your son over at one of the most critical times of his life to complete strangers. For a coach to provide what you’ve been teaching your child his entire life is invaluable to me.”