Shawn Watson Named Pitt OC: Latest Contract Details, Comments and Reaction

Shawn Watson left his role as Indiana quarterbacks coach Thursday to become the new offensive coordinator at Pittsburgh.

The Panthers' official website confirmed the hiring of Watson and noted that he'll also work as quarterbacks coach at Pitt. The announcement included a statement from head coach Pat Narduzzi about the staff addition:

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Shawn Watson was one of my first mentors in this business. He sat me down as a young coach and taught me how to work with wide receivers in my first full-time job at Miami in the early 1990s. Ever since that time, we have always talked about being able to reunite on the same staff again. I'm really thrilled that the time has finally arrived and he'll be joining us at Pitt as our new offensive coordinator.

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Watson arrives to Pittsburgh with a wealth of coaching experience at the collegiate level. The former safety began his career on the sideline as a graduate assistant at Southern Illinois, his alma mater, in 1982 and made stops with eight other schools over the past three-plus decades.

It's a journey that included one stint as a head coach. He led the Southern Illinois program for three years starting in 1994. He failed to register a winning season, however, going 11-20 overall.

Otherwise, almost all of his work has focused on the offensive side of the ball. This is the fourth time he'll fill the coordinator role, previously holding the position at Colorado, Nebraska and Louisville. The Cardinals ranked 26th in scoring offense under his guidance in 2013.

Now he's looking forward to the opportunity at Pitt.

"I am tremendously honored and excited to join the staff at Pitt and be part of what Pat Narduzzi is building there," Watson told the program's official website. "Pat is one of my closest and dearest friends. I've known him for a very long time and have always admired the passion and energy he brings to coaching and teaching. Pat and his staff have accomplished so much in such a short period of time at Pitt. I can't wait to join them, meet our players and get ready for spring ball."

Andrea Adelson of ESPN noted his time at other schools didn't come without critics, though:

One thing's for sure: expectations will be high with the Panthers.

Watson is set to inherit an offense that ranked 10th in the country in points last season at more than 40 per game. Alas, he'll be forced to replace senior quarterback Nathan Peterman and junior running back James Conner, who declared for the NFL draft.