For more photos, click here
The University of Dayton athletic program has seen many high-profile stars complete an impressive four years in their respective sports. No player may be as noteworthy recently as men's soccer senior defender Tommy Watkins.

Battling back from a broken leg his freshman year and a car accident last season, Watkins has emerged as a co-captain and leader of the reigning regular season Atlantic-10 Conference champions.

"It has been up and down, but the atmosphere of the coaching staff and the players is just one huge family," Watkins said. "There is tons of support, and if you really want to succeed, this is the place to be."

Away from the pitch, the pre-physical therapy major has a 3.79 GPA and was recently named as a finalist for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. The recognition goes to one "student-athlete of the year" in several NCAA sports, and UD's reigning defensive player of the year thanks his surrounding environment for the assistance.

"It is all just time management, and these coaches really stress the total student-athlete and being good on and off the field," he said. "It just really helps to have good driving factors behind you pushing you to be your best."

Head coach Dennis Currier first noticed Watkins while recruiting him from Richmond, Va. four years ago. The program leader was impressed by the youngster's confidence at that moment and continues to talk about the helpful characteristics of his star defender.

"Tommy's been an integral part of our program and a symbol of Dayton soccer," Currier said. "He is really the epitome of a student-athlete that we want to represent our team, both in the classroom and on the field. Being his last year, he has stepped up into a huge leadership role, and he is going to have a big role in teaching the younger guys what a true Dayton Flyer is."

Watkins was named to the preseason A-10 All-Conference team this year and has appeared in all but one game dating back to the start of the 2008 season. The co-captain is now one of just two seniors amidst 18 new players in a rising program with back-to-back appearances in the conference tournament final.

"Well, being the only guy left from my original recruiting class, I certainly have a lot of responsibility on my back trying to show all of these new guys what it is all about to be in the Dayton Flyers soccer program," he said. "It is kind of motivating ... I've really taken it in stride, and I enjoy being a leader for these guys."

Highly-touted freshman Marlon Duran said Watkins is an "almost perfect" role model and the senior even picked up Duran from the airport on his first day in Dayton this year. The two have a close working relationship on the field, since the first-year primarily plays defensive midfield.

"I'm always learning from Tommy everywhere, every game, every practice, and he is always telling me what to do and how to do it better," he said.

In terms of lasting memories, Watkins maintains that his favorite moment at UD was winning the A-10 tournament championship in Pittsburgh in 2008, securing the team's first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance. He hopes to help the new players on the team achieve a similar goal in the years to come.

"I don't want to say that I am going to leave too much, but I'm just obviously going to leave with a lot of memories," he said. "I just want to leave with a legacy of someone that worked hard, put in their time and hopefully influenced other guys to follow the right path."

The senior is closing in on a historic career at UD, and is certainly setting an example for star soccer players in the future.

"It's great to have a guy like that on the field because he helps you with everything," Duran said about Watkins' impact. "The worst, the good or whatever is coming, that is a guy that you can rely upon for anything."