“It’s a good school and close to home where I can be with my family almost every weekend,” Watkins said of the Division I school that competes in the Mid-American Conference. “I’ll also have the opportunity to compete for the starting job as a freshman. That’s very important.”
Watkins (6-foot-4, 205 pounds) was the leading passer in the Greater Miami Conference each of the last two seasons. As a sophomore, he threw for 2,045 yards and 26 touchdowns. Last season, he threw for 2,089 yards and 22 TDs.
“Bowling Green has been high on his list for a while,” MHS coach Jason Krause said. “We’ve been talking a lot the last two weeks. The quarterback situation there will be wide open when he is a freshman, and I think that opportunity made them more valuable to him.”
Watkins also received offers from other MAC schools such as Ohio University, Kent State, Northern Illinois, Ball State and most recently Central Michigan.
Krause said there were several other schools that had Watkins high on their boards.
“I know he worked out for Purdue last Sunday,” Krause said. “The coach called me and said he had a great workout, but Caleb liked BG enough to go ahead and get this done. I’m not surprised at all that he made a commitment already.”
Watkins is the second Middie to announce his verbal commitment to a Division I school in recent weeks. Running back Antonio Banks committed to the Big Ten’s Indiana University on June 20.
“I learned so much from them already when I went to their camp,” Watkins said, speaking specifically of the Falcons’ new quarterback coach Warren Ruggiero. “He was at Kansas State last year and coached Josh Freeman, who was the 17th overall pick in the NFL Draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this year. I know I’ll learn a lot more in four years there.
“But now, I can focus on my senior year,” he continued. “My main goal is for us to make the playoffs. It’s been a long time since Middletown has done that.”
The last time the Middies reached the playoffs was in 1990, a year before Watkins was born.
Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2852 or sweaver@coxohio.com.
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