Meet the BYU QB commit from Arizona recommended by Max Hall, Ty Detmer

PROVO — Some Division I football recruits produce eye-popping numbers that can't be ignored by college coaches, while others simply look the part of a quality quarterback.

Enoch Watson is almost certainly the latter.

The 6-foot-3, 200-pound dual-threat signal caller threw for around 600 yards each of his past two seasons of varsity football at Coconino High in Flagstaff, Arizona. Watson ran a Wing-T offense at the small school in northern Arizona, which likely contributed to his limited production.

He also ran for 322 yards and eight touchdowns while completing 50% of his limited passes for 1,210 yards, 11 touchdowns and five interceptions in two years.

So committing to BYU, as the younger brother of current BYU signee Pierson Watson did on Sunday, was one of a few big steps the high school senior-to-be will be taking in his final year before graduation.

Another? He's joining former BYU quarterback greats Ty Detmer and Max Hall at American Leadership Academy in Queen Creek, Arizona, where the head coach and offensive coordinator, respectively, will attempt to take Arizona 6A football by storm with the newest Cougar QB commit.

And then? Well first, it's off to serve a two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, similar to Pierson, who is currently in Argentina. But after that, the Watson brothers hope to take their long-awaited dream school by storm.

"For me, ever since I was young, all I ever knew was BYU," Watson told ESPN radio in explaining his commitment. "There was really no point in just keep waiting it out. I thought I'd commit early and focus on my team."

Watson may have been light on pro-style experience before committing to BYU, but the dual-threat hurler with a variety of arm angles who has been coming to camp at BYU since he turned 14 comes with glowing recommendations from some former Cougar greats.

Watson is the product of a pair of college athletes; both of his parents played college basketball, including father Jeff who played at the University of Idaho before meeting his Canadian mother. His uncles Jadon and Aaron Wagner played linebacker at BYU, and some of Watson's earliest memories include eating CougarTails at LaVell Edwards Stadium.

"They're hyped to keep the pipeline going from Pierson to me now," said Watson, who also plays basketball and pitched until his sophomore season of baseball. "Hopefully one of their kids can keep it going, too."

And then, of course, there's the 1990 Heisman Trophy winner paired with BYU's all-time winningest quarterback, who will attempt to take on arguably the most difficult schedule in Arizona's 6A Open division this fall with a program that played 3A football as recently as 2019 and a quarterback whose family moved to the East Valley after years among in the Flagstaff snow.

"I'm really excited for Enoch to get up there, and see what he's got," said Hall, who runs a similar West Coast offense to BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick. "He's a great kid with a great energy about him — polite and respectful, but he's still got that dog in him. His family moved down here, and I didn't know much about him. I heard he had been up at the BYU camp the previous year, so I talked to (former BYU quarterback) Jacob Conover and A-Rod and they were all very impressed with him the year before.

"I didn't know what I had until we started spring ball, and he surprised me big time with how fast he's learning the offense, his decision-making ability, his leadership qualities, and his ability to throw the defense."

While the transfer portal continues to gain the most traction in college football's offseason calendar, the Cougars — like everyone else — are quietly mining the recruiting trail. Big portions of that trail have come from the state of Arizona, too, including four-star tight end Jackson Bowers out of Mountain View High in Mesa in the Class of 2023 and three-star safety prospect Thomas Prassas from Basha in Chandler for 2024.

There's currently a run on recruits from the Valley of the Sun across the nation. But there's plenty of talent coming out of the Grand Canyon State, Hall adds.

"I think Arizona is becoming one of the premier states in the country, and there's a lot of talent football-wise coming out of the state, especially out here in the east valley around Gilbert, Mesa and Chandler," the Mesa, Arizona, native said. "It's good to see BYU recruiting this athletes, and athletes committing and wanting to go there.

"I hope we keep sending kids up there."

Roderick is trusting Hall and Detmer to help the young quarterback acclimate to a new system and style of play. That hasn't been a problem, Hall said — at least, not through spring football. The kid is a natural, he added.

Hopefully, Watson admits, it's a preview of a collegiate career to come.

"There aren't a lot of QBs that have two of the greats coaching you — a Heisman winner as your head coach and one of the greats at BYU as your OC," Watson said. "I get to learn from them every day. Max showed me one of his games, and that just helps me."

Recruiting: Who has committed to BYU football in the Class of 2024?

Here's a brief look at who has already committed to the Cougars, as well as some players to be on the lookout for in the coming months.

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