Billy Watson - Blue Dragon Athletics

Bio

Billy Watson is in his fifth year as the Coordinator of Events for Blue Dragon Athletics at Hutchinson Community College.

Watson oversees and coordinates athletic events in a variety of ways, including execution of game operations, coordinates all the student workers on staff and assists the sports information department. Watson is in charge of the event planning for Gowans Stadium and the Hutchinson Sports Arena.

Among other duties in the department, Watson is also the public address voice for the Blue Dragon softball team. 

Prior to joining the Blue Dragons athletic department, Watson was the sports reporter at The Hutchinson News from March 2021 to August 2022 where he covered the Reno County area high school sports scene as well as documented the 2021 Blue Dragons national championship football team.

Watson was named recipient of the 2023 Kansas State High School Activities Association's Oscar Stauffer Sportswriter of the Year award. 

Watson graduated with a bachelor's degree in journalism from Texas Tech University in December 2020. Watson’s journalism career spans from Kansas back to deep south Texas where he is from. Watson found his love for sports a year into college and interned with Rio Sports Live, a live-streaming company. In his three summers and three months full-time with the company, Watson executed play-by-play operations, broadcast set-up and takedown, public relations, social media, and camera operation. 

Watson got his first-hands on experience covering high school sports by sneaking into a high school football game and taking pictures. From there, he joined the Rivals website, Redraidersports.com, to cover Texas Tech football, basketball and baseball. He also freelanced for HubCityPreps.com, a high school sports website in Lubbock, Texas. 

Watson’s life revolves around sports even outside of work. He officiates college men’s and high school basketball. 

Watson was born in Newmarket, Ontario, Canada. He attended La Feria High School in the Rio Grande Valley region in south Texas. Watson was a first-team all-District 32-4A selection in basketball. 

Watson now owns a Lab-Great Dane mix named Deacon with his girlfriend Bailey, who is a counselor at Hutchinson Community College.