Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels is telling LSU that it can’t use his name, image and likeness, feeling betrayed after the school issued his jersey number to another player.
ESPN reported Thursday that Daniels’ representatives sent a letter to LSU athletic director Verge Ausberry demanding the Southeastern Conference school cease and desist.
Daniels started his college career at Arizona State in 2019 and spent three seasons there. He transferred to LSU in 2022 and played two seasons in Baton Rouge, taking advantage of the extra year of eligibility granted to athletes impacted by the 2020 pandemic. Wearing jersey No. 5, Daniels won the Heisman Trophy following the 2023 season.
The Commanders selected him second overall in the 2024 NFL Draft.
That standout 2023 season should be enough to keep No. 5 off the backs of future Tigers, a Daniels spokesperson told ESPN.
But sophomore cornerback DJ Pickett respectfully disagrees. Pickett is not arguing merit, but was promised the jersey number after he was named a freshman All-American in 2025 when he wore No. 3.
“I’ve worn the number my whole life, since I was 4 years old,” Pickett, a sophomore, said Thursday. “It’s the number I was promised [by LSU]. I wish Jayden the best. Good player, and he did real good here [at LSU]. So, that’s all.”
Representatives for Daniels said the Daniels family felt “deeply disappointed and profoundly disrespected” by LSU granting “Jayden’s number to another player.”
“Jayden and his family had every reason to believe that his number would remain a meaningful part of his LSU legacy and would be honored and protected in recognition of his extraordinary contributions to the university,” the family spokesperson added.
No LSU player was issued Daniels’ number the past two seasons. Joe Burrow had No. 9 on his back when he won the Heisman Trophy and a national championship, and it has not been available since.
“Jayden made it clear that he did not want his number given to another player, and he believed his wishes would be respected,” the statement said. “His Heisman Trophy-winning season and everything he accomplished on and off the field cemented his place in LSU history. To see his number given to another player is incredibly disappointing and feels like a failure to honor the significance of what Jayden accomplished at LSU.”
A spokesman for LSU’s athletic department declined to comment to ESPN on Wednesday.
Daniels, however, addressed the topic Thursday on social media.
“I have been locked in on training camp and that’s been my number one focus,” he said over Instagram. “I have a lot of gratitude for my time at LSU and I’m proud of what my teammates and I accomplished there.
“Obviously there are issues to be worked out between my team and LSU and my hope is that it will get done privately. My sole personal focus is on Commanders’ football. I realize the business of football is unique and I trust this can all be resolved.”
First-year LSU head coach Lane Kiffin said Pickett wore No. 5 in high school in Zephyrhills, Fla., and the guarantee of carrying that over at LSU was a bonus during his recruitment.
“DJ is in (No.) 5, and that was a situation that was promised to him in recruiting here, for him to sign here,” Kiffin said. “I’ve done a lot of research on that with the family and the representatives and the people, so really I didn’t have a decision to make. It was promised to the kid. It wasn’t done for whatever (reason). I’m not going to get into that.
“I’m not going to judge something (that was done) when I wasn’t here. But when a kid is promised something to come to a school, he should wear it. So at that point, I don’t think that’s really my decision. We should honor what he was told.”
Chip Kelly, who was the head coach at LSU until he was fired 10 months ago, acknowledged to ESPN that Pickett received that promise. Kelly said, however, that he didn’t allow that because Daniels disagreed with another player having the number.
“We didn’t want to issue No. 9, so you can’t treat one differently from the other,” he said.
If Daniels wants his jersey number officially retired, under LSU rules, he must have been removed from college competition for at least five years. All athletes, to have a jersey retired, “must have demonstrated truly unusual and outstanding accomplishments. … The athletic performance must be considered unique, such as winning of a Heisman Trophy or National Player of the Year award, and should be based on the total LSU career.”
LSU has retired the jerseys of four former players — halfback Billy Cannon (No. 20), defensive back Tommy Casanova (No. 37), halfback Jerry Stovall (No. 21) and running back Charles Alexander (No. 4) — and will retire the No. 7 worn by quarterback Bert Jones on Nov. 14.
Jersey retirement doesn’t mean the number can’t be worn again by an LSU player. According to ESPN, Cannon’s No. 20 is the only number that cannot be issued.
And if LSU ever is to retire the jersey of Burrow or Daniels, they might have to wait a while.
Jones, who passed for 3,255 yards in his LSU career, has waited for than 50 years. Jones played for the Tigers from 1971-73 and went on to become the No. 2 overall pick in the 1974 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Colts. He won league MVP two years later.
He turns 75 next month.
–Field Level Media
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