Jayden Daniels Doesn't Want Anyone Wearing His Number At LSU

Jayden Daniels only spent two seasons at LSU, but it didn’t take long for him to become part of the school’s football history. Now, three years after winning the Heisman Trophy in Baton Rouge, the Washington Commanders quarterback is making it very clear that he believes the No. 5 he wore along the way should be treated accordingly.

Daniels’ representatives sent LSU a cease-and-desist letter telling the university that it can no longer use his name, image or likeness. So to be clear, Daniels has not sued LSU — at least not yet. The legal letter is essentially a formal demand that the school stop using his NIL rights, with the possibility of further legal action if LSU doesn’t comply. According to ESPN, Daniels’ agreement with LSU allowed the school to continue using his NIL for 180 days after his final college game, a window that expired long ago.

But this isn’t really about LSU randomly putting Daniels’ face on a billboard. The entire situation stems from the Tigers deciding to give cornerback D.J. Pickett the No. 5 jersey beginning with the 2026 season. Pickett, a former five-star recruit who recorded three interceptions as a freshman in 2025, previously wore No. 3. He was reportedly promised the opportunity to wear No. 5 when he signed with LSU in December 2024 under former head coach Brian Kelly. New coach Lane Kiffin has said he believes the school should honor that promise.

Daniels and his family clearly see things differently. His spokesperson said Daniels had previously made it clear that he did not want another LSU player to wear No. 5 and believed those wishes would be respected. His camp said the decision left the family feeling “profoundly disrespected,” arguing that what Daniels accomplished in the number should have earned it a special place in LSU history. No LSU player had worn No. 5 since Daniels left for the NFL.

It isn’t hard to understand why Daniels feels attached to it. After transferring from Arizona State ahead of the 2022 season, he immediately helped LSU reach the SEC Championship Game. Then he exploded in 2023, completing 236 of 327 passes for 3,812 yards, 40 touchdowns and just four interceptions, while adding 1,134 rushing yards and 10 more touchdowns. His 4,946 total yards and 50 touchdowns helped him post a 208.01 passer efficiency rating, which LSU notes was an FBS record at the time.

Those numbers earned Daniels the 2023 Heisman Trophy, making him another LSU quarterback to claim college football’s biggest individual award after Joe Burrow’s historic run four years earlier. But by the time Daniels left Baton Rouge, he had accumulated 6,725 passing yards, 2,019 rushing yards and 8,744 yards of total offense across his two seasons with the Tigers. Washington eventually selected him with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft.

There is one complication, though. LSU never officially retired Daniels’ No. 5. In fact, Daniels isn’t even eligible for LSU’s formal jersey retirement process yet. Under the university’s published criteria, a former athlete must have finished competing for LSU at least five years before being nominated. The criteria specifically mention accomplishments such as winning the Heisman Trophy as exceptional achievements worthy of consideration, meaning Daniels certainly appears to have the résumé — he simply hasn’t reached the required waiting period.

And LSU doesn’t hand these honors out casually. Only four football players currently have retired jerseys at the school: Billy Cannon’s No. 20, Tommy Casanova’s No. 37, Jerry Stovall’s No. 21 and Charles Alexander’s No. 4, with Alexander becoming the latest in 2025. That helps explain why LSU may have been unwilling to unofficially take No. 5 out of circulation years before Daniels could even go through the school’s retirement process.

That also means Daniels’ cease-and-desist probably cannot, by itself, stop Pickett from wearing No. 5. The number belongs to LSU’s uniform inventory, and the school never formally retired it. Daniels’ more immediate leverage involves something different: his own name, photographs, likeness, highlights and other promotional uses tied specifically to him. In other words, LSU could find itself in the awkward position of allowing another Tiger to wear No. 5 while being unable to use one of the most famous No. 5s in school history in certain marketing or promotional materials.

For now, this feels more like a very public pressure campaign than a full-blown courtroom fight. LSU could simply honor the cease-and-desist regarding Daniels’ NIL while still letting Pickett wear No. 5. The two sides could also eventually reach some sort of understanding, especially as Daniels becomes eligible for official jersey retirement consideration down the road. But if LSU continues to use Daniels’ NIL against his wishes, his representatives could take the dispute further.

Either way, Daniels has made his position impossible to misunderstand. No. 5 represents the two seasons that transformed him from a talented transfer quarterback into a Heisman winner and one of LSU’s modern football legends. And even if he can’t officially prevent another Tiger from putting the number on, he’s doing just about everything within his control to make LSU think twice about what that number means.

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See social media’s reaction to the controversy regarding Daniels’ old number below.