In one version of this tale, JJ Watt enrolls at Central Michigan as an offensive lineman, vanishes into obscurity, and no documentary is ever produced about him. It came very close to happening. And it’s because of that near-miss that his college experience is worth studying, not only as football history but also as an example of knowing oneself before others do.
Watt was raised in Pewaukee, Wisconsin, a tiny community outside of Milwaukee where hockey is a religion and the winters are harsh. He traveled to Canada and Germany with competitive teams, played ice hockey from the age of four to thirteen, and was, by most accounts, a truly versatile athlete. Football had taken over as the primary obsession by high school. He was named an All-State tight end and defensive end, won the Woodland Conference Player of the Year award, and even won the state shot put championship. Rivals.com rated it two stars, which is not bad for a child.
Two stars. In retrospect, that ranking seems almost embarrassing, but it reveals something crucial about how scouting functions—and how frequently it doesn’t. Even though Watt was physically strong and 6-foot-5, neither Rivals nor Scout considered him to be one of the best prospects at either of his positions. Before committing to Central Michigan, where head coach Butch Jones allegedly offered him the chance to score touchdowns as a tight end, he traveled to Colorado and Minnesota. That was sufficient, whether it was a sincere pledge or a recruiting pitch.
By all accounts, his Central Michigan freshman year was disappointing. Eight receptions, 77 yards, no touchdowns. What followed was more telling: the coaching staff recommended that he switch to offensive tackle. Watt had gained roughly 25 pounds since arriving, and the projection made a kind of cold logic from a physical standpoint. Offensive linemen don’t have to catch passes, and he was big and strong. However, it seems that Watt did not want to be a part of that future. He turned down his scholarship. Just that choice says something.
After transferring to Wisconsin, he played defensive end for coach Bret Bielema while redshirting for the 2008 campaign. That year, he was named Scout Team Player of the Year by Wisconsin, which, depending on your point of view, is either a significant honor or a consolation prize. It might have been both. What transpired after that redshirt year is undeniable.
Watt appeared to be a different player in a different body by his first actual season at Wisconsin. He was finishing games with multiple sacks, double-digit tackles, and a physicality that opposing offenses were obviously unprepared for at 6-foot-5 and around 290 pounds. With 4.5 sacks in his first year at defensive end, seven in his junior year, 21 tackles for loss, and an All-Big Ten first-team selection, his stats got better every season. After that junior season, he left, skipping his senior year completely, and entered the 2011 NFL Draft.
He was selected eleventh overall by the Houston Texans. Looking back, even that selection seems conservative in light of what transpired—three Defensive Player of the Year honors in his first five seasons, and a statistically ridiculous 2014 campaign that is still mentioned in discussions of the best individual defensive seasons ever.
When watching that 2014 tape, it’s difficult to ignore the Central Michigan version of this tale. At the NFL level, the same hands that coaches desired to anchor an offensive line were also catching touchdown passes. However, every Sunday, those same hands were also destroying quarterbacks. Watt’s college narrative served as both a proof of concept and a redemption arc. Sometimes the player has a deeper understanding of the role than the coaches.
