Nathaniel Watson Named Male Athlete of the Year by Mississippi State

Former Mississippi State linebacker Nathaniel Watson headlines multiple other award winners from the football team at 2024 Maroon And White Night.

Nov 23, 2023; Starkville, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs linebacker Nathaniel Watson / Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports

Former Mississippi State linebacker Nathaniel "Bookie" Watson was named Male Athlete of the Year by the school during Tuesday's 2024 Maroon And White Night.

In this awards ceremony, individuals across 14 sports were recognized for their athletic success, scholarly abilities and community service endeavors that occurred between the beginning of 2023 and the end of the 2023-2024 winter sports season.

As a senior, he again finished as one of the team's leading tacklers, and even was one of the top tacklers in the entire SEC. But he truly emerged as an elite talent this season, as he totaled a whopping 137 tackles, 13.0 tackles for loss and 10.0 sacks. He led the entire SEC in tackles and sacks.

Watson gained a ton of recognition for his efforts, as he was named to the All-SEC Coaches First Team, received College Football Network All-America honors, College Football Network First Team All-SEC honors, AP SEC Defensive Player of the Year, AP All-SEC First Team honors and a spot on the AP All-American Third Team.

Watson's accomplishments also earned the attention of the NFL as he was drafted by the Cleveland Browns with the 206th pick in the sixth round this past Saturday.

A six-year veteran of the program, Watson was a 3-star prospect in the 2018 recruiting class and held offers from other SEC programs, including the likes of Ole Miss. He opted to choose maroon and white over powder blue, and arrived in Starkville as a true freshman that fall.

Watson had to wait until his fourth (junior) season to be named a starter and finished second on the team in tackles with 84 to go along with 6.0 tackles for loss and 5.0 sacks.

In addition to Watson, multiple other football players received awards on Tuesday night. Senior kicker Nick Barr-Mira won the Male Community Service Award and not only was senior offensive lineman Grant Jackson the football team's representative for the Newsom Awards (given to one student-athlete in each sport for outstanding athletic and academic success), but he was the Overall Men's Winner of the honor as well.