DJ PICKETT 2026 PROFILE

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By LONN PHILLIPS SULLIVAN

Following his historic debut season, LSU's skyscraping 6'5 cornerback DJ Pickett is ready for an even better sophomore campaign, adapting more responsibility on and off the field, while he remains dedicated to sharpening his craft.

The young Tiger DB's freshman year was already outrageous, but could he possibly top that??? And what would that look like???

We're talking about a towering, lengthy presence who ranked as the 13th best coverage man in the SEC, named a freshman All-American after his medieval exploits last fall, a raw young player Coach Raymond gradually worked into LSU's starting cornerback job over the course of 2025, mostly splitting snaps with 2026 cornerback partner PJ Woodland.

Intercepting 3 passes (a 4th, a pick six, wrongfully called back vs Florida), batting down 3 more, displaying nefarious versatility when entering the backfield for 3 tackles for loss and a sack, wrapping up 37 tackles, never allowing more than 2 catches in any performance, giving up a 48.4% completion mark over 304 coverage snaps, surrendering only 21 catches out of 38 total targets for 248 total yards (7 catches from 17 targets in man coverage), while allowing a trio of learning experience touchdowns, Pickett is beyond the real deal: he is the next great one.

Corey Raymond saw that same ol' golden gleam in him years ago when he first recruited the Florida native...

It speaks volumes how Coach Raymond trusted Pickett immediately, encouraging his participation at bowl practices when he was still a high schooler, setting the table for an incredible DBU feast, a chance for a second straight season with a Tiger in contention for the Thorpe Award, while starting the former Gulliver Prep 5 star on a stunning trajectory.

Not only is Raymond iconic at recruiting, developing & maximizing the greatest LSU Tiger defensive backs, Corey Raymond's real business is cultivating, nurturing & elevating prospective professional talents into men who change the history of their family name....Stingley, Delpit, Delane, Williams, White, Adams, Fulton, Reid, Jackson, Ricks, Flott....

📸 by Harrison Valentine

“He’s not just a coach to me. He’s a real mentor. Outside of my Dad, I see him as a father figure. He helped me grow as a cornerback, to get where I’m at right now. He’s a technician. The platform of being a DB here is amazing," Pickett told the assembled media last week, waxing lyrically & poetic about Coach Raymond, revealing a tight knit bond and demanding fatherly connection between Pickett and his legendary position coach.

Under Raymond's guidance, starting full time with no veteran corners like Mansoor Delane to lead the way, pick up the slack, or dare I say it, hide behind, 2026 will be the proving ground for DJ Pickett's claim to the DBU throne...

Because of his unique measurables, outrageous 6'5 height and widescreen wingspan, Pickett is blessed with a supernatural body that can win nearly any conceivable pass targeted his way or help him recover almost a full yard of length using his speed and long arms...

Showcasing updated weapons in his skill arsenal, mostly a growing, maturing, calculated understanding of the game, LSU's starting corner continues to stand out as one of the Tigers' most significant overall players, possibly only 4th behind Leavitt, Weeks, and Seaton.

Pickett is already embracing the fire he will face in 2026, the deep end he will be thrown into (without a life vest) as an under the microscope sophomore superstar...

...My instincts tell me quarterbacks will continue to FA&FO (based on his subpar bowl game tape), targeting Pickett in order to find out if he's the real deal...and it's up to Damien Jr to fight every snap and elevate his coverage game until he reaches the ultimate pinnacle of his talents, harnessing his full powers & continuing his ascension towards the mirroring, shape-shifting, aerial leviathan he was always born to become...

SHOUTOUTS TO

THE MYTHICAL LOUIS CORONA, JAMER, PEGGY, JOSH LONG, SARAH JOHNSON, AND THE GEAUX TEAM CREW!!!

By LONN PHILLIPS SULLIVAN

©️ 2026 Uninterrupted Writings Inc