Danny Watkins: Baylors unknown Canadian

Baylor senior left tackle Danny Watkins was born in Kelowna, British Columbia. Watkins never picked up a football until three years ago at Butte College in California, where he was a junior college all-American as a sophomore. He enrolled at Baylor in January of 2009 and totaled 103 knockdowns last year and was one of 11 Bears to start all 12 games.

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Q: What sports did you play in Canada?

A: I played hockey in the winter time. And then when I got to grade eight I played rugby in the summer and hockey in the winter.

Q: Never football?

A: No sir. It’s getting bigger but at the time the sport was hockey.

Q: Did your rugby skills transfer to football?

A: I think the most critical skill that I learned was playing hockey and that was learning how to skate backwards and bend your knees. It really is the same in pass protection. You need to bend your knees, sink your hips and get down. Run blocking is the hardest thing for me.

Q: What position did you play in hockey?

A: I was a glorified goon. I hope my parents aren’t going to hear this, but they used to stop coming to the games because they said, ‘If we wanted to watch you sit in the penalty box we’d stay at home and watch you sit in your room.’

Q: Were you a good fighter?

A: I definitely lost a few and had my fair share of black eyes.

Q: You win any?

A: I hope.

Q: Lose any teeth?

A: These front two are fake.

Q: How did you get into firefighting?

A: I started when I was 16. Junior day at the fire hall or something, a tour and a recruit class that same day. And I was like, ‘Yeah, I want to do this. This is cool. I’d love to do this.’ I met the captain that day, and the chiefs and I knew that there wouldn’t be a job to top that working with a better bunch of guys than those guys. I knew right away that that’s what I wanted to do.

Q: What did you like about firefighting?

A: Honestly, the camaraderie. You’ll never meet a finer group of outstanding men than that. The thing that makes football great, too, is the same thing. Playing on the offensive line with the same guys day-in and day-out. Through the good and the bad.

Q: Is firefighting something you’ll continue doing?

A: That’s what I do on breaks and during the summer. Go on calls, do night shifts.

Q: So it’s ongoing?

A: It was. I’m hoping in December to be training somewhere for the next step of my football career.

Q: You were the fourth pick in the Canadian Football League draft this year. Were you close to signing?

A: Playing in the CFL is an honor and a privilege in itself, but it didn’t cross my mind to leave. I had a lot of unfinished busuness here with Baylor and I’m going to take football as far as I can in my professional career whether it’s in the U.S. or Canada.

Q: What sort of unfinished business?

A: I want to come back to Baylor and win a bowl game.