While Steven Pickard is currently considered an in-state offensive lineman, he won’t be for much longer.
The 2026 3-star prospect, who spent his freshman and sophomore seasons at Phillip Simmons High down in Charleston, announced on Wednesday that will transfer to IMG Academy for his junior campaign.
Pickard feels like taking that step is what’s best for him as he continues to develop and prepare for playing at the collegiate level.
“The main thing was development and competition,” Pickard told The Clemson Insider. “They are just on another level that you don’t see in high school almost anywhere.”
It’s a move that Pickard has been pondering for more than a year. While he didn’t feel quite ready last year, the 6-foot-5, 300-pounder now does.
“Last year in April, I went to one of their camps, and I really liked it there,” Pickard said. “The only thing was, I just wasn’t ready, like, personally. And then this year, after seeing all these coaches and all these visits, I was like, if I really want to take my steps to the next level, I have to really commit to this, and I got to do it.”
After last visiting for the spring game, Pickard will return to Clemson on June 5 to work out at Dabo Swinney’s high school camp and the fast-rising prospect is anxious to show how much he’s improved since working out for the coaching staff last June.
“I want to show the coaches that I really improved since the last time they saw me,” he said. “That I’m a different person, I’m a different player. That I’ve gotten so much stronger, so much quicker, so much better. And I also want to kind of improve that personal relationship, because I really like the coaching staff there.”
Maryland, Duke, NC State, Boston College, Virginia, South Carolina and Clemson are some of the schools Pickard has been hearing from the most recently.
He plans to camp at Maryland this weekend before heading to Clemson. He will then work out at Duke, NC State, Boston College and Virginia.
While it will certainly make for a busy few weeks, Pickard is up to the task. With his recruitment really just beginning to amp up, he is looking to start earning Power-5 offers before the start of his junior season.
And an offer from Clemson at some point in the future, well that is one Pickard is really looking to earn.
“It would mean a lot to me,” Pickard said. “Especially since I think Clemson, as a program, is just different from every other program. It’s just electric. The school has a great energy to do it. The environment’s just different than other schools. And I think it would mean a lot for me, since growing up, I did see a lot of Clemson stuff, a lot of Clemson games, and it’s just, you know, wow.”
