When Lane Kiffin left Ole Miss for LSU, he took with him several of the school’s top assistant coaches including offensive coordinator Charlie Weis Jr. and running backs coach Kevin Smith.
Kiffin has also flipped a couple of the Rebels top commits to his new school as well, but one of his biggest blows Kiffin dealt to his former home came on Sunday when he poached one of Ole Miss’ top recruits from a season ago.
According to On3’s Hayes Fawcett, four-star wide receiver Winston Watkins committed to Kiffin and LSU on Sunday after hitting the transfer portal following Ole Miss’ heartbreaking loss to the Miami Hurricanes in the College Football Playoff semifinal on Thursday.
“BREAKING: Ole Miss true freshman transfer WR Winston Watkins Jr. has Committed to LSU, he tells @On3sports,” Fawcett reported.
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Watkins was the No. 32-ranked wide receiver and No. 267 player nationally in the class of 2025, according to the 247Sports composite rankings. He was one of the Rebels’ top recruiting gets last season, and one of the top available WRs still in the transfer portal.
The 6-foot-2 freshman logged 26 catches, 373 yards, and a touchdown this season while helping lead Ole Miss to the College Football Playoff.
He ranked fourth on the team in receiving behind seniors Harrison Wallace (61 catches, 934 yards, four touchdowns) and De’Zhaun Stribling (55 catches, 811 yards, six TDs), and sophomore Deuce Alexander (44 catches, 684 yards, two TDs).
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Landing Watkins is a big get for LSU, which has been on a roll in bringing in more wide receiver talent through the portal the last few weeks.
Kiffin and the Tigers have added several four-star wideouts including Florida transfer Eugene Wilson III, Kansas State transfer Jayce Brown, Old Dominion transfer Tre Brown , and Illinois transfer Malik Elzy.
Three-star Hawaii transfer Jackson Harris, three-star McNeese State transfer Josh Jackson, and West Florida transfer Tyree Holliday also signed on with LSU, which lost three four-star wide receivers — Kylan Billiot, Destin Hill, and TaRon Francis — to the transfer portal after Kiffin’s departure.
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