OXFORD — Jordan Watkins’ main emotion when he returned a third-quarter punt 70 yards for a touchdown this past Saturday wasn’t exhilaration.

Instead, the Rebels’ soft-spoken wide receiver felt relief.

“Being a punt returner is one of the most stressful things on the field besides being a quarterback,” Watkins said. “You have to take care of the ball. Just to turn something small like that into a big play, it’s awesome.”

Watkins played a big role in Ole Miss’ season-opening, 73-7 win over Mercer, adding six receptions for 111 yards.

“It felt great,” Watkins said. “It really did. It felt really good to go out there and go against somebody who’s not your teammate. That’s always helpful. Just to get rolling and have a day like that, your adrenaline takes over and you just go out there and play your game.

“Once the game got flowing, it kind of sunk into me a little bit. Everybody takes a peek at the jumbotron from time to time. You see that stat line and you’re like, ‘Holy crap. Wow, we’re putting up some big numbers.’”

For his efforts, Watkins was named the Southeastern Conference Co-Special Teams Player of the Week, as announced by the conference on Monday afternoon.

Watkins has emerged as a key component of Ole Miss’ offense, especially as the Rebels wait for tight end Caden Prieskorn and wide receiver Zakhari Franklin to return from injuries and make their Ole Miss debuts. He’s also become one of the vocal leaders of an Ole Miss team chock full of transfers and newcomers.

“I always take pride in going out there and knowing what to do and kind of being the safe point for the quarterback and kind of being the quarterback of the receivers almost,” Watkins said. “If someone’s not set or where they’ve got to be, I can get them there. I’m just a really big stickler on details on pretty much everything I do, and being that extra voice out there, that extra coach, really helps the offense flow.”

Ole Miss (1-0) travels to New Orleans to face Tulane at 2:30 p.m. in a game that will be televised nationally by ESPN2. The Green Wave defeated South Alabama this past Saturday.

“They’ve got a really good defense,” Watkins said. “They have really good players and a really good scheme. Their coach knows what he’s doing. We have to come with our A-game for sure. They’re a really good football team. …They’re going to come ready to play and you’ve got to be ready.”