Amid the current situation at LSU regarding DJ Pickett’s wearing of the No. 5 jersey and his connection to Jayden Daniels, another former Tigers legend spoke out about the possibility of his jersey being back in circulation. Speaking with reporters after the Cincinnati Bengals preseason game Thursday night, Joe Burrow explained that LSU officials told him they “wouldn’t wear” the No. 9 jersey again, but “you never know what happens” as time goes on. Pickett, who appeared in 13 games as a freshman, wore the No. 3 jersey last season. He is switching to No. 5 for his sophomore campaign. Daniels wore the number during his two seasons at LSU from 2022 to 2023. No one has worn the Tigers’ jersey number since he left. On Thursday, a representative for Daniels sent a cease-and-desist letter to LSU athletic director Verge Ausberry, informing the school that it can no longer use Daniels’ name, image and likeness. Daniels posted a statement on social media saying there are “issues to resolve” between his camp and LSU, but his “hope” is that it can be resolved privately. Pickett’s father told The Advocate’s Koki Riley that his son has no plans to move from No. 5 despite all the controversy surrounding the situation. There was no indication from LSU since Daniels left school that the No. 5 had been retired or would not be put back into circulation at some point. According to LSU’s official jersey retirement bylaws, retiring a specific jersey does not take it out of circulation for current student-athletes and the decision to allow its use is “subject to the discretion of the head coach.” The bylaws were established on January 1, 2007, so the five numbers that LSU retired in various sports before that remain ineligible to be worn by anyone. Those retired jerseys belong to Pete Maravich (No. 23), Bob Pettit (No. 50), Shaquille O’Neal (No. 33), Billy Cannon (No. 20) and Skip Bertman (No. 15). Burrow’s number being unused is due to him winning the Heisman and leading one of the greatest teams in college football history in 2019. LSU went 15-0 and set an FBS single-season record with 726 points scored.
