Milton Gunnar Watson (born January 11, 2000) is an American professional football quarterback who is a free agent. He played college football for the Troy Trojans.

Gunnar Watson
Personal information
Born: (2000-01-11) January 11, 2000 (age 24)
Macon, Georgia, U.S.
Height:6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school:Taylor County
(Butler, Georgia)
College:Troy (2018–2023)
Position:Quarterback
Undrafted:2024
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards

Early life and high school

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Watson grew up in Butler, Georgia and attended Taylor County High School where he lettered in football and baseball.[1][2] He was rated a three-star recruit and committed to play college football at Troy over offers from Austin Peay, Mercer and South Alabama.[3][4]

College career

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During Watson's true freshman season in 2018, he played in two games as a reserve quarterback and finished the season completing 8 out of 14 passing attempts for 45 yards.[5] During the 2019 season, he played as the backup quarterback playing in six games and finishing the year with completing 13 out of 22 passing attempts for 89 yards.[6] During the 2020 season, Watson was named as the starting quarterback.[7] He started in nine games during the season and finished the season with completing 211 out of 307 passing attempts for 2,141 yards, 16 touchdowns and seven interceptions.[8] During the game against Texas State, he made 33 completions which had him named the Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week, a Manning Award Star of the Week[9] and the Davey O'Brien Great 8 List.[10] During the 2021 season, he played in eight games and finished the season with completing 140 out of 228 passing attempts for 1,613 yards, eight touchdowns and four interceptions.[11] During the 2022 season, he played in 13 games and finished the season with completing 206 out of 335 passing attempts for 2,818 yards and 14 touchdowns.[12] He was named the MVP of the 2022 Sun Belt Conference Football Championship Game after completing 12 out of 17 passing attempts for 318 yards and three touchdowns.[13][14][15]

College statistics

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Season Games Passing Rushing
GP GS Record Cmp Att Pct Yds Avg TD Int Rtg Att Yds Avg TD
Troy Trojans
2018 2 0 8 12 66.7 45 3.8 0 0 98.2 4 -18 -4.5 0
2019 6 0 13 22 59.1 89 4.0 0 0 93.1 0 0 0.0 0
2020 9 9 4−5 211 301 70.1 2,141 7.1 16 7 142.7 30 -66 -2.2 0
2021 8 7 3−4 140 228 61.4 1,613 7.1 8 4 128.9 27 -64 -2.4 1
2022 13 12 10−2 206 335 61.5 2,818 8.4 14 12 138.8 61 -173 -2.8 2
2023 14 14 11−3 268 439 61.0 3,569 8.1 27 6 146.9 51 -106 -2.1 1
Career[16] 52 42 28−14 846 1,337 63.3 10,275 7.7 65 29 139.5 173 -427 -2.5 4

References

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  1. ^ Hall, Erik (September 24, 2020). "Gunnar Watson: 5 things to know about the Troy University football quarterback". Montgomery Advertiser. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  2. ^ "Gunnar Watson". Troy Trojans.
  3. ^ "Gunnar Watson, Taylor County, Pro-Style Quarterback". 247sports.com. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  4. ^ "Gunnar Watson, 2018 Pro Style Quarterback, Troy". Rivals.com. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  5. ^ "Gunnar Watson 2018 Gamelog". Sports Reference. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  6. ^ "Gunnar Watson 2019 Gamelog". Sports Reference. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  7. ^ "Troy names Gunnar Watson starting quarterback". Montgomery Advertiser. August 22, 2020. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  8. ^ "Gunnar Watson 2020 Gamelog". Sports Reference. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  9. ^ "Eight Quarterbacks Named Manning Award Stars of the Week 10/12/2020". Allstate Sugar Bowl. October 12, 2020. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  10. ^ "Gunnar Watson Named Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week & Davey O'Brien Great 8". Troy Trojans. October 12, 2020. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  11. ^ "Gunnar Watson 2021 Gamelog". Sports Reference. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  12. ^ "Gunnar Watson 2022 Gamelog". Sports Reference. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  13. ^ "Troy dominates Coastal Carolina early, holds on to win Sun Belt championship, 45-26". AL.com. December 3, 2022. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  14. ^ "Watson, Troy win Sun Belt title over Coastal Carolina, 45-26". WSFA. December 3, 2022. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  15. ^ "No. 24 Troy and No. 25 UTSA Set to Play in the 2022 Duluth Trading Cure Bowl". Cure Bowl. December 4, 2022. Retrieved September 25, 2023.
  16. ^ "Gunnar Watson College Stats". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved October 3, 2023.
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