- Florida Gators defensive tackle Desmond Watson impressed at Pro Day, showcasing his size and strength.
- Watson, who weighed in at 464 pounds, recorded a remarkable 36 reps on the bench press, surpassing the top mark at the NFL Combine.
- Despite his size, Watson demonstrated surprising athleticism, clocking a 5.93-second 40-yard dash.
Florida football held its Pro Day Thursday morning, and within the first hour, a Gator made his mark in a BIG way.
Of course, it was Desmond Watson. The defensive tackle weighed in at 464 pounds to start pro day — 15 pounds more than his listed weight for the 2024 season.
Next was the vertical jump. Was Watson’s 25 the lowest of the Gators who participated? Yes. But still, not bad for someone who weighs nearly a quarter of a ton.
Then came the main event for Watson — the bench press. There, Des truly excelled. He bench pressed a 36. Not only was that by far the best mark of any Florida football player, but it would also have been the top mark at the NFL Combine by three reps.
Gator coach Billy Napier and players were not surprised by Watson’s mark. Nothing he does surprises anyone.
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“Des is a unicorn. You’ll go the rest of your career; you’ll never be around a guy of that stature,” Napier said. “Once you get to know Des, he’s extremely intelligent, got a great sense of humor.”
Brendan Crenshaw-Dickson said there have been days when it looked like Watson could lift up the entire weight room.
“I was fired up during that whole time, and it was a great time seeing them,” Crenshaw-Dickson said.
Joey Slackman hopes a showing like this can motivate NFL scouts to take a chance on Watson. If drafted, he’d be the heaviest player in NFL history.
“He moves way better than anybody thought that he would at his size. I played next to him on the field, and I didn’t think there was a drop off with him being on the field versus anybody else,” Slackman said. “I don’t see why a team wouldn’t give a chance. He’s a football player through and through. I would want that guy on my team.”
On the 40-yard dash, Watson cleared the six second mark – coming in at 5.93.
Napier said Watson entered Thursday in good shape, noting it was a continuation of this past season when he was in the best shape of his career and played his best ball.
“He’s had numerous nutritionists, position coaches, strength coaches,” Napier said. “I think he’s learned a lot about habit building, self-discipline. The guy’s frame score would indicate that he’s always going to be big.”
The NFL Draft is on Thursday, April 24.
Noah Ram covers Gainesville-area high school sports and University of Florida athletics for The Gainesville Sun, GatorSports.com and the USA TODAY Network. Contact him by email at [email protected] and follow him @Noah_ram1 on X/Twitter.
