Just over a year ago, Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks missed out on five-star cornerback DJ Pickett as he committed to the LSU Tigers and Brian Kelly.
Now, Kelly is out at LSU, and the vultures are circling. Lanning needs to hop on that train, and Pickett should be his No. 1 target.
Yes, the blue-chip prospect is already enrolled, but his head coach is no longer his head coach, and at the end of the day, he was so close to committing to the Ducks instead of the Tigers.
Numerous recruiting experts logged predictions that he would choose Oregon over LSU, and even over his home state team of the Florida Gators. While Lanning wasn't able to land his commitment, he could undeniably lean into that pre-existing connection to bring Pickett to Eugene.
All 3 major recruiting services have now logged predictions for DJ Pickett to Oregon pic.twitter.com/C891FiLlOS
— Oregon Updates (@oregon__updates) July 16, 2024
Pickett isn't the only recruiting target of Oregon's that Kelly and the Tigers were able to poach. Four-star defensive lineman Deuce Geralds also committed to LSU instead of the Ducks, despite taking numerous visits to Eugene.
While Geralds has yet to take snaps at the collegiate level, Pickett is already proving that he was worthy of the hype. Simply put, Lanning has to try to get the five-star cornerback back in his corner.
DJ Pickett freshman stats at LSU
- 17 total tackles (15 solo)
- 1 sack
- 1 interception (4 yards)
- 1 pass deflection
Pickett has played in eight games since joining the Tigers in January, so he won't be able to utilize his redshirt year after this season. Yet, the true-freshman CB would still have three years of eligibility remaining, which he could absolutely use to play for the Ducks.
Meanwhile, Geralds has all four years of eligibility still in his back pocket, and if Lanning could convince blue-chip defensive lineman to flip his commitment, Oregon would have an incredibly powerful group joining the defense next season.