Welcome to ASE Sports: Evolving The Athletic Environment

High school football player celebrates after a play.

By: Gary Watts III

Published: April 16, 2022

Blythewood, S.C.

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As I sit and think about how to begin this writing, it becomes a daunting task to consider. So inevitably, I thought the best place to start would be the beginning.

“I would like ASE Sports to be a hub for emerging athletes, sports professionals, sports fans, and sports organizations to come and ingest critical knowledge that is presented to help promote positive activities, operations, and performance - Gary A. Watts”

My name is Gary Watts and I hail from the city of sunny beaches and palm trees, Miami, FL. I was raised in the historical Pork N Beans projects within Liberty City until I was 10 years of age. As a youth, I did not have a solid relationship with my father throughout my life. Furthermore, my mom, who was my rock, passed away in 1996 which devastated me mentally. These factors sent me on an emotional, physical, and psychological journey that included various ups and downs.

Pork~N~Beans Projects; Miami, FL

I always felt a need to want to help and do more in life, for myself and others around me. I also felt I held a different view of the world and all that it encompassed. Being able to understand people without speaking to them and feeling connected to nature as we are connected to family (attributes of being an Earth Sign; Virgo life!). As a youth, I did believe that I was meant for something greater than the current environment that my family and I were bonded to in the projects of Liberty City.

I was never the popular kid but quieter and reserved. I did have friends but did not "hang out" a lot. Although, that part was sometimes by choice but mainly by force thanks to my sisters and aunts who looked after me after my mom's passing. They did the best they could to keep me grounded and away from many negative variables that Miami can be inflicted on many black youths.

One thing that I did take interest in was the experience of watching sports. Around the age of 11, I can remember that my uncles and cousins were big sports fans in Miami and would always tune into the Miami Dolphins and the Miami Heat broadcasts. If it was a weekday, it was always sports talk radio that I would hear playing in the car covering our hometown teams.

Floor view of the Kaseya Center (formerly American Airlines Arena).

Of course, as I watched with them, I developed a love for the Miami Dolphins' teal & orange and loved watching the Heat throw down in Triple-A Arena (currently the Kaseya Center). Being minutes away from Hard Rock Stadium (formerly Joe Robbie Stadium, Pro Player Stadium, Sun Life stadium) gave Sundays a unique atmosphere in the city when the Dolphins played home games.

Sun Life Stadium prior to reconstruction into Hard Rock Stadium.

In my growth as a fan, I focused on my dormant athletic ability and started engaging in pick-up games of basketball and football. I wasn’t always the best, but I showed myself enough skill set that I knew I wanted to partake in joining an organized sports team.

Ironically, I got started early in organized basketball playing at the middle school level. I only played organized flag football in elementary school, but no other youth football leagues such as pop warner which was popular in Miami. Entering high school, one of my best friends, up until this day, went out for quarterback on the junior varsity squad.

This encouraged me to go out and join the junior varsity team as well because quite frankly we hung out every day and I had nothing else to do after school (easy grounds for getting in trouble). I was also recruited to play on the varsity basketball team at my alma mater, Miami Norland Senior High.

I started as a wide receiver and did well working my way up to starting position during my sophomore year. As junior varsity came and went, I found myself trying out for the varsity football team at wide receiver in my 11th-grade year.

In this, I was ultimately switched over from wide receiver to defensive end by my coach at the time, Nigel Dunn. I literally thought my athletic success was over based on closed-minded concepts. I never played defense before and honestly wanted the flashy image that wide receivers such as fellow alumni Dwayne Bowe achieved.

Surprisingly, by the start of the season for my junior year, I was named the starting defensive end for the Miami Norland Vikings. I was given the news of starting in the number one spot a few days before our opening match against Monsignor Pace High. I took that opportunity and ran with it as a year later I was able to earn All-Dade honors, a top 100 position ranking in Florida, and a Division-I scholarship to play at Rutgers University.

Gary Watts & Jason McCourty making a tackle.

When I arrived at Rutgers, it became clear that this atmosphere and environment were nothing I could ever imagine being from the inner city. I did frequent University of Miami football games as a recruit and even had the opportunity to congregate in the team’s locker rooms post-game. But being integrated into any university as a student-athlete is an experience that transcends an athlete’s perspective. I was playing Division-I football at a major university in a whole new state and this opened me up to various new dimensions of the student-athlete experience.

The time spent at Rutgers is a whole other story (I will be sure to cover that later). As an athlete, I had a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and I gained a vast amount of knowledge and experience regarding not only football but the athletic industry as a whole. At Rutgers, I was able to see how tough it was for athletes to navigate heavy course loads, a diverse social environment, and mature on the field and off the field through relationships built, for better or worse.

That impact is a driving force behind my wanting to pursue a sports career in helping promote sustainable functions for athletes and organizations worldwide. I am now in my last year of acquiring my Master of Science in Sport Management from Southern New Hampshire University. With this, I look to bring all that I have learned as an athlete, student, and professional to the forefront to help promote sustainable athletic evolution.

College graduates tossing caps in the air.

I would like ASE Sports to be a hub for athletes, sports professionals, sports fans, and sports organizations to come and ingest critical knowledge that is presented to help promote positive activities, operations, and performance.

Thank you for taking the time to review my first blog post. I hope to deliver valuable and entertaining content for all to review moving forward!

If you are in need of assistance, ASE Sports will be happy to help!

We offer various services that are valuable to the success of student-athletes, their parents, and sports managers that can help to evolve skills and attributes within the sports segment.

Feel free to reach out to us with any inquiries and we will be in touch!