Five-Star LSU Football Freshman Has Brian Kelly's Attention During Spring Camp

Brian Kelly and the LSU Tigers will wrap up Spring Camp on Thursday with the program working through 15-plus days of practice in Baton Rouge.

It's been a pivotal stretch for the program in the Bayou State as Kelly and Co. work through an important offseason stretch.

It's been a mix of newcomers and returning pieces that have thrived for the purple and gold, but the early-enrollees have taken the staff by "surprise" during camp.

“I just think overall the understanding of how to go out and compete in practice has been really, for me, outstanding for the young guys to pick it up,” Kelly said Tuesday.

“Like the Solomon Thomases and the Carius Curnes, they’ve done an incredible job as young players coming in and understanding how to compete — the D.J. Pickett's. All of our mid-year freshmen really have come in and adapted so quickly."

#LSU signed the No. 1 cornerback in America last December: DJ Pickett.

Now, the early-enrollee is quickly making noise in Baton Rouge during Spring Camp.

Pickett has pieced together a strong start with multiple big days through five practices.

(🎥: @LSUfootball) pic.twitter.com/WJemlJICxZ
— Zack Nagy (@znagy20) March 15, 2025

It's never expected that the mid-year enrollees will grasp the college regime quickly, but the program highlights multiple members of each Signing Class to come in and compete right away.

This year's class has Kelly salivating at the potential they attain.

“And I guess that’s why they’re mid-years, right? They’re so far ahead of their freshman counterparts that it really does show why they were able to graduate early from high school, because they were much more mature," Kelly said.

"Those kids have done an incredible job of really blending in and showing that they belong right away. They’re going to be so far ahead coming into camp relative to being able to compete."

It's been a "long" stretch of Spring Camp with the program electing to add two more practices to the schedule, but Kelly has seen his youngsters continue looking the part despite a strenuous slate.

"That’s been kind of a surprise to me. This is the first class that I’ve had at mid-semester where it’s not like, ‘That guy is so far away.’ It just feels like they’ve been here. And that’s been a bit of a surprise," Kelly said.

But one name that has taken the program by storm is five-star freshman DJ Pickett. The No. 1 cornerback in the 2025 Recruiting Cycle has the coaching staff intrigued at the future.

"I mean, when you look at DJ Pickett from the first three bowl practices to now, he's a different animal out there," defensive coordinator Blake Baker said during camp.

"A lot of the credit goes to him. Every day I go in the indoor, he's got the VR on. He works at it. He's very, very humble. He loves football. He's very hardworking."

"When you look at DJ Pickett from the first three bowl practices to now he's a different animal"#LSU Defensive Coordinator Blake Baker with high praise for DJ Pickett.

Baker says the true freshman corner has showcased his work ethic, humility, and is also training using VR. pic.twitter.com/tuwuDwecmp
— John Eads WAFB-TV (@JohnEadsWAFB) March 27, 2025

LSU will wrap up Spring Camp on Thursday in the program's final day of practice with all focus shifting towards summer workouts beginning in June.

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