Senior wideout keys Cactus Shadows' resurgence

Each week SI.com will select the athlete who displays excellence on and off the field as the Primetime Performer.

Kyle Watkins, Sr., WR, 6-4, 215
Cactus Shadows (Cave Creek, Ariz.)

Kyle Watkins has no scholarship offers yet, but he said he would like to play football at the next level. Photo by Nancy Dales

Senior wide receiver Kyle Watkins was the centerpiece in one of  this season's greatest rags-to-riches stories in high school football. The 6-4, 215-pounder tied an Arizona state record with 21 catches Saturday as Cactus Shadows defeated Gilbert Higley, 28-14, to win its first Class 4A Division II state championship. He amassed 209 yards and scored a pair of touchdowns.

Two years ago first-year head coach Chad DeGrenier started 16 sophomores and the Falcons were winless in 10 games. As juniors they compiled an improved, but still lackluster 5-6 record. However, this year, the veteran senior nucleus helped the Falcons go undefeated and become the first team in Arizona history to win 15 games.

Watkins, who runs a 4.6 40 and has a vertical jump of 34 inches, also set a single-season state record with 24 touchdown catches -- despite missing four games due to a pulled muscle and sprained ankle. During the regular season, he caught a state-record five touchdown passes in a game, setting a school record with a total of 293 yards. He completed his senior season with 88 catches (No. 3 in Arizona history) for 1,556 yards.

"It feels great," Watkins said of last Saturday's brilliant performance. "I don't think it's hit me yet that we won the state championship. I always dreamed about it, but I knew it was going to be hard."

The standout wide receiver said that the Falcons were extremely effective running short routes in the title game, because "They were scared to death of our deep ball. They were back-pedaling right away."

In regards to the four games he missed, Watkins conceded, "I probably could have had over 100 catches and over 2,000 yards."

Coach DeGrenier calls Watkins "a special kid. He's one of those late bloomers. He was very raw, but he got better every week and every year. He used his quickness and size to make a great target. He really developed into a great receiver. This year he really tore it up. He'll do well wherever he goes."

Watkins started playing flag football as a fifth grader. He was the quarterback for a team which played a championship game in the America West Arena. DeGrenier, who at that time was playing for the Arizona Rattlers, recalls being impressed by Watkins, though he didn't know his name. After the game, Watkins asked his future coach to autograph a shirt for him, which he still has.

Watkins' parents wouldn't let him play tackle football, so he concentrated on basketball, baseball and volleyball at Desert Arroyo Middle School. As a 6-1 freshman, he finally was allowed to play for Cactus Shadows. Though he always wanted to be a receiver, he started at linebacker and running back for the freshman team.

The move to receiver came during his sophomore year and he was good enough to make the all-region team. Following the 0-10 season, he said, "I was disappointed, but I knew we were young and it would get better." The 5-6 junior season ended with a blown lead and a bitter loss in the first round of the playoffs.

"We all got mad," Watkins said. "Everybody worked unbelievably hard in the off season and it paid off. Not everybody was that dedicated the previous year." Personally, he said he worked out four or five days per week during the past summer. He even hired a running specialist, went to a couple of camps with his quarterback, Phillip Aholt, and the entire team went to a passing camp in San Diego.

Each summer Watkins, who also is a two-year starter in basketball, helps his coach, who operates the Gotta Believe Camps. Young athletes of all ages are taught running form and catch-and-run routes. He also assists his parents in running the non-profit Reptile Rescue Farm. They have over 400 reptiles -- such as alligators, rattlesnakes and lizards -- housed on a property which includes a barn and 10 ponds. "People bring them to us," Watkins explained. "We try to place them in other states. We get donations and some grants."

Surprisingly, Watkins, who has a 3.0 GPA, has no solid college scholarship offers yet, though he has several home or school visits coming up. "I want to play football at the next level," he said.