TAMPA, Fla. — If you had asked Carlos Watkins three years ago whether he thought he would be in the position he’s in with Clemson right now, the answer likely would have been no.

Three years ago, Watkins was lying in a hospital bed, recovering from injuries suffered in a car wreck on Sept. 21, 2013, that took the life of his best friend Dache Gossett and left Watkins trapped inside the vehicle for more than an hour before firefighters managed to get him out.

So, Watkins probably wouldn’t have expected to be sitting at one of the podiums during Saturday’s Media Day for the national championship game against Alabama on Monday.

He especially wouldn’t have envisioned being in the national title game for the second straight season as a two-year starter, two-time All-ACC defensive tackle and an All-American in 2016.

“I probably would have told you I wouldn’t, especially not two years,” Watkins said.

It took almost a year after the crash for Watkins to begin feeling like his old self, both physically and mentally. However, after missing the rest of the 2013 season following the accident, Watkins made up for lost time upon his return to the field.

In 2014, Watkins re-entered the mix at defensive tackle and rounded back into form. A year later, he started every game, earned All-ACC honors for the first time and helped Clemson to its first national championship appearance since 1981.

This year as a senior, he made the All-ACC team again while blossoming into an All-American.

“I wanted to get back for that season, but my body just wouldn’t allow me,” Watkins said, reflecting on what transpired in 2013. “Once I got back on the field, I just wasn’t myself for a while. I kind of got discouraged, but I stayed on course.

“My teammates and coaches did a great job of encouraging me through the process. Once I got back in the groove, I started to gain a little more confidence, and that was really key.”

Heading into Monday’s national championship game, Watkins ranks first on the team with 12.5 tackles for loss, first with 10.5 sacks and fifth with 73 total tackles.

In last week’s College Football Playoff semifinal win over Ohio State at the Fiesta Bowl, Watkins recorded two sacks to set Clemson’s single-season record for sacks by a defensive tackle, surpassing the 10 posted by Jim Stuckey (1979), William Perry (1984) and Michael Dean Perry (1987).

His sack in the second quarter extended Clemson’s streak of games with at least one sack to 44.

“Carlos Watkins is one of the reasons we’re playing for this championship,” Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables said after the game.

After his success last season, Watkins was forced to consider leaving Clemson early for the NFL, and no one would have blamed him if he did.

Looking back on his decision to stay put, the native of Mooresboro, N.C., is glad he chose to finish out his collegiate career and get his college degree.

“It was a very good choice for me to come back,” he said.

Oftentimes when a player with pro potential opts to come back to school, his heart isn’t fully in it.

Venables, throughout his 23 years of college coaching experience, has seen plenty of cases where a player loses his focus with an eye on the next level.

Watkins, though, has remained in the moment and given Clemson his all.

“Carlos never had a bad attitude,” Venables said. “He came to work to get better, got himself better, got stronger, got leaner, got faster.”

After all he has been through, Watkins’ career is down to one big, final game.

He certainly appreciates the opportunity to play for the national title, having nearly been taken away from the game of football by the devastating car crash three years ago, and he’s ready to fight for the Tigers one more time.

“It’s going to be very emotional. I sit back and think about it all the time,” Watkins said. “This opportunity is rare, and I’m just trying to be as grateful as possible.”