If Jayden Daniels thought starting a war with LSU was going to get the college football world on his side as some type of athlete bucking the system, the former Heisman Trophy winner was receiving some horrible advice.
Just another day in the wild offseason that has engulfed college football, right?
When news officially broke early Thursday morning that representatives for Jayden Daniels were finally going to pull the trigger on filing a cease-and-desist letter against LSU over the use of the former Tigers quarterback's NIL, the dam finally broke on an internal fight that had been brewing for more than a year.
JAYDEN DANIELS TELLS LSU TO KEEP HIS NAME OUT OF ITS MOUTH IN WILD NO. 5 JERSEY FEUD INVOLVING NIL
The news that Daniels was taking a stand over what his camp felt was a "disrespectful" move by Lane Kiffin in allowing DJ Pickett to wear the No. 5 jersey this season. That was not a surprise to folks in Baton Rouge.
The conversations around the jersey number dates back to Brian Kelly's tenure as the LSU head coach, given that he was also apprehensive about whether someone else should be given the chance to wear Daniels' former number.
But, this was the culmination of a promise to DJ Pickett before he had even arrived in Baton Rouge as an official student.
When Jayden's inner circle first became aware that the "sacred" No. 5 jersey could potentially be worn by another LSU athlete, the bad advice started accumulating around Daniels. For some reason, under the banner of what Jayden's camp is labeling "respect," picking a fight with the school that helped propel him to lifelong gold status among its fan base was the move they decided to make.
And don't forget, Jayden's mother, Regina Jackson, represents him on a daily basis as an agent.
I'm not an expert in marketing, but having your mother make such important calls regarding your career doesn’t feel like the smartest decision. Bringing family into such a business usually doesn’t lead to the best advice, especially when their livelihood is also on the line.
"I have been locked in on training camp and that's been my number one focus. I have a lot of gratitude for my time at LSU and I'm proud of what my teammates and I accomplished there," Jayden Daniels posted on social media Thursday afternoon. 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."
The current conundrum isn't shocking to those within the college football world who followed the awkward off-field situations in this chaotic time wrapped in NIL disagreements and lawsuits, even if Jayden Daniels was not solely to blame.
But during a time in which "respect" is being valued, you can throw allegiances out the door in college athletics. We are living in a much different world than the one Tim Tebow inhabited in the years following his remarkable collegiate career at Florida.
You didn't see Tebow throwing public tantrums over players like Anthony Richardson, Graham Mertz or Jacob Copeland being allowed to wear the coveted No. 15 jersey. The reason is simple: The former Heisman Trophy quarterback at Florida immortalized that number, and the jersey sales over the past decade alone prove that point.
It's not who wears the jersey. It's the legacy that a player builds while wearing it that will be remembered.
In the case of Jayden Daniels, he supposedly feels slighted by the fact that Joe Burrow isn't having LSU officials call him to ask whether he'd be comfortable with another Tiger donning the No. 9 jersey.
Why?
Because Joe Burrow became LSU folklore, leading the Tigers to an undefeated season and winning the Heisman Trophy. And while Jayden Daniels' camp might want to use Burrow as a measuring stick when comparing the "respect" factor at LSU, the two players simply aren't in the same league from a marketing standpoint.
By the way, we aren’t even discussing the fact that Burrow's time at LSU will be remembered in a different way than what Daniels accomplished during his 9-3 season that ended with his own Heisman.
To be honest, it's just the reality of this situation in the constant changing landscape of college athletics.
Make no mistake, this decision was made by the current head coach at LSU, even if the former (Brian Kelly) had trepidation about pulling the trigger.
In the eyes of Lane Kiffin, something as minute as a jersey number was not going to be a dividing factor in how he runs his own football team.
So, when DJ Pickett wanted to cash in on a promise made by the previous staff, the current LSU head coach did what he thought was right.
"That was a situation that was promised to him in recruiting here for him to sign here. And I've done a lot of research on that with the family and the representatives and people," Lane Kiffin mentioned last week. "And so, really, I didn't have a decision to make. It was promised to the kid.
"I'm not going to judge something that I wasn't here for. But when a kid's promised something to come to school, he should wear it. And so at that point, I don't really think that's my decision. You know, he should be honored with what he was told."
Maybe Jayden Daniels' camp thought it could hop aboard the anti-Kiffin train and ride it toward overwhelming public support. If so, it chose the wrong mode of transportation.
It's one thing to take a stand when you know the court of public opinion will most likely swing in your favor.
But Jayden Daniels, perhaps not even fully aware of the ramifications as he prepares for the upcoming NFL season with the Washington Commanders, received some pretty bad advice on how to move forward with a dispute involving his former school.
Now, he's taking hits before the NFL regular season even begins.
For that, I hope the hassle was financially worth it for those guiding him.