Justin Pickett

Duke 2025 team captains Wesley Williams, Darian Mensah, Aaron Hall and Justin Pickett, wearing white Sun Bowl champions hats and blue Duke jerseys, stand with the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl trophies and celebrate the 42-39 victory against Arizona State on December 31, 2025.

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Duke's offensive line, all wearing a white helmet, white jersey and white pants, move in sync following the snap versus No. 16 Virginia in the 2025 ACC Championship Game.

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Duke celebrated its first outright ACC Championship since 1962 following its thrilling 27-20 overtime victory versus No. 16 Virginia on December 6, 2025.

Photo by: ANDREW HANCOCK

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Duke offensive lineman and captain Justin Pickett reacts after a snap during the Blue Devils' 38-3 victory at Syracuse on September 27, 2025.

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Duke offensive lineman Justin Pickett blocks and provides pass protection against Illinois.

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Justin Pickett prepares to block a UNC defender.

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Matt Craycraft, Justin Pickett and Brian Parker II prepare to block UNC defenders.

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Brian Parker II and Justin Pickett prepare for a snap against UNC.

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Maalik Murphy, Aaron Hall, Justin Pickett and Jordan Moore walk to the coin toss at Georgia Tech.

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Position:
Offensive Line
Height:
6-7
Weight:
317
Class:
Redshirt Junior
Hometown:
Carmel, Ind.
High School:
Carmel

CAREER: Lettered four (2022-23-24-25) seasons … team captain in 2024 and 2025 … earned Third Team All-ACC accolades in 2025 … three-time Academic All-ACC selection ... National Football Foundation (NFF) Hampshire Honor Society honoree in 2024 ... member of the 2025 ACC Football Student-Athlete Advisory Group ... played in 49 games and started 35, 25 at right guard, and one at left tackle … helped Duke to a program-record 35 wins over four seasons, four bowl game appearances (2022 Military Bowl, 2023 76 Birmingham Bowl, 2024 TaxSlayer Gator Bowl and 2025 Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl), three bowl victories and Duke’s first outright ACC championship since 1960 … played 2,469 career snaps.

2025: Third Team All-ACC … team captain … recipient of Duke's hard hitter award, fittingly presented to the hardest-hitting and most physical players on the team ... named to the October 5 Pro Football Focus (PFF) National Team of the Week following Duke’s 45-21 victory at California … started all 14 games, 13 at right guard and one at right tackle … made the shift to tackle for the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl after Brian Parker II declared for the NFL Draft … graded by PFF as having the eighth-highest pass blocking grade (77.9) in the ACC … helped Duke to its first outright ACC title since 1960 with a thrilling 27-20 overtime victory against No. 16 Virginia … a key piece of the Blue Devil offensive attack that set the program record for total touchdowns scored (63), points scored (484) and pass efficiency (152.53) … part of an offensive unit that became the first in school history to have a 3,000-yard passer, 1,000-yard receiver and 1,000-yard rusher … provided protection for a Duke passing attack that averaged 285.36 yards per contest, the program’s highest mark since 2009 ... member of Duke’s offense that ranked among the NCAA leaders in fourth down conversion percentage (.738; 4th), total first downs (316; 10th), passing yards per game (285.4; 10th), points per game (34.6; 16th), team passing efficiency (152.53; 19th), completion percentage (.664; 25th) and total offense (423.5; 25th) … helped the Blue Devils to top-five ACC offensive rankings for passing yards per game (1st), points per game (1st), fourth down conversion percentage (1st), total first downs (1st), team passing efficiency (2nd), total offense (3rd), fewest turnovers lost (14; 3rd) and completion percentage (4th) ... aided in the protection of QB Darian Mensah, who set Duke single-season records for passing yards (3,973), pass completions (334), pass attempts (500), passing touchdowns (34), pass efficiency (153.59) and touchdown-to-interception ratio (5.67-1) ... opened holes for Duke’s ground attack that featured the first season in program history with two or more backs having 10 or more touchdowns each with Anderson Castle (12) and Nate Sheppard (11) … helped Sheppard establish the school single-season freshman record for rushing yards with 1,132 as well as the rushing touchdowns by a rookie mark ... on the field for 899 total snaps.

2024: Academic All-ACC and NFF Hampshire Honor Society selection … team captain ... recipient of the team's Duke Tough Award, which is presented annually to the football student-athlete who personifies the physical and mental toughness required to be a Blue Devil ... saw action in 11 games (11 starts) at right guard, missing just the Miami and NC State games … key member of an offensive line that ranked second in the ACC, and tied for ninth nationally, in fewest sacks allowed per game (0.92) ... helped Duke not yield a sack in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl to an Ole Miss team that entered the contest averaging 4.33 sacks per game ... part of a unit that allowed 72.0 tackles for loss, with just 234 yards lost, the fourth-lowest total in the ACC … provided pass protection for Maalik Murphy to throw for a Duke single-season record 26 touchdowns ... on the field for 738 snaps.

2023: Academic All-ACC selection … saw action in 10 games (seven starts) at both left and right guard … registered starts against Florida State, Louisville, North Carolina, NC State, Troy, Virginia and Wake Forest … helped the offense accumulate 2,174 rushing and 2,351 passing yards as well as 26 rushing TDs, which was tied for the fifth-most in program history … anchored an offensive line that ranked third in the ACC and tied for 24th nationally in sacks allowed per game (1.31) and second in the league and tied for 31st nationally in TFL allowed per outing (4.77) … played a key role in Duke only losing 171 rushing yards on the year, the fewest in the ACC … on the field for 463 snaps.

2022: Academic All-ACC selection ... saw action in all 13 games, making three starts against Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech, and Wake Forest ... assisted the offense in accumulating 2,394 rushing and 3,010 passing yards ... helped Duke register 31 rushing TDs, which set the program record for a single season ... helped an offensive line unit rank first in the ACC in sacks allowed (17) and TFL allowed (51) ... created paths for four Blue Devils to rush for 400+ yards, a first in program history ... on the field for 358 snaps.

2021: Recipient of the program’s Sonny Falcone Iron Duke Award, an honor presented annually to offensive, defensive and developmental program members for their year-round commitment to strength training and conditioning ... played in one game against North Carolina A&T … on the field for 11 snaps.

PRIOR TO DUKE: Lettered three seasons at Carmel under coach John Hebert ... three-star prospect by ESPN.com, Rivals.com and 247Sports.com … helped Carmel compile a 39-14 overall record, including a state title during junior season … named team captain as a senior and garnered first team All-Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference honors while being tabbed to the Indianapolis Star Super Team … also lettered in basketball.

PERSONAL: Graduated from Duke in December 2024 with a degree in public policy, minor in sociology and a certificate in markets and management studies ... son of Jeff and Cassy Pickett … mother lettered four years in volleyball at Ball State University (1991-92-93-94) and is enshrined in the school’s hall of fame … brother, Jakob, was a five-year member of the Siena Heights University volleyball team (2020-21-22-23-24) earning two Academic All-WHAC honors (2023 and 2024) and a WHAC All-Freshman team nod (2020) … sister, Jessica, is a two-year member (2023-24) of the volleyball team at Valparaiso ... uncle, Greg Pickett, played basketball at Indiana Wesleyan University (1993-94-95) … uncle, Brad Pickett, played basketball at Moorhead State University (1995-96-97) … cousin, Bryan Bullington, lettered in baseball at Ball State University (2000-01-02) and was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2002 MLB Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates.