One of Lane Kiffin’s top off-field staffers has left Ole Miss for an on-field position with Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights announced that Marquise Watson is the team’s new defensive line coach.

Watson has been seen as a rising star. In September 2020, Watson, 25 at the time, was included on 247Sports’ “30 under 30” list of the top assistants under the age of 30. In February 2021, Kiffin promoted Watson from grad assistant to player personnel analyst. In 2021, Watson held the title of Senior Analyst at Ole Miss. Watson has some prior defensive line coaching experience, filling in for Deke Adams during Ole Miss’ Outback Bowl appearance.

Watson was a defensive grad assistant at Rutgers from 2018-2020.