Pat Narduzzi announced a pair of staff changes on Friday afternoon. Pitt offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Shawn Watson and wide receivers coach Kevin Sherman will not be brought back for the 2019 season.

"I want to thank Shawn and Kevin for their efforts and dedication to our program," Narduzzi said in a press release. "Certainly we wish them and their families the very best in their future endeavors."

Watson just finished his second season as Pitt’s play caller. He oversaw the 2017 offense that finished 101st in total offense as the team finished with a 5-7 record. In 2018, Watson guided an offense that finished 97th overall in total offense and 93rd in scoring offense with 25.6 points per game. The Panthers finished with a 7-7 overall record.

Under Watson, the Pitt offense proved to be very effective on the ground led by two 1,000 rushers in Qadree Ollison and Darrin Hall in the 2018 season. The Panthers posted a school-record for yards in a single game with 654 yards against Virginia Tech. However that was one of the few bright spots. In Pitt’s final three games, the team scored a total of 26 points and the team finished 0-3 in those games. In Pitt’s first-ever ACC Championship game appearance, the Panthers could only muster eight passing yards.

As the quarterback coach, Watson also directly handled the coaching of Pitt sophomore quarterback Kenny Pickett. As a freshmen, Pickett eventually broke through as the starter and knocked off No. 2 Miami to close the 2017 season. Despite the promise, Pickett did not develop much further this season and Pitt finished with the 120th ranked passing attack in the FBS out of 129 teams.

Kevin Sherman has been a member of the Pitt staff since the beginning of the Narduzzi era in 2015. Under Sherman, Pitt developed Jester Weah into a downfield threat, but that was one of the few bright spots under Sherman’s direction. Quadree Henderson was one of the most electric players in the country for two seasons, but was mostly reduced as a return specialist and a rusher. His pass catching was never developed and he eventually left for the NFL early.

Pat Narduzzi will now move onto his fourth offensive coordinator in five seasons. Jim Chaney started off the Pat Narduzzi era in 2015, but was eventually lured away to take the same position at Georgia. Matt Canada took the 2016 offense and made it one of the most exciting offenses in Pitt history, but he eventually took a job at LSU. Watson was the only offensive coordinator to stay more than one season under Narduzzi, but could never capture the success of either of his predecessors.

The national championship game is set to be played on Monday, and with that comes the annual NCAA Coaches convention. Narduzzi will likely start to talk to candidates there.