Steven Pickard Jr., a rising senior in the IMG Academy football program, will be the first offensive lineman in the program’s history to elevate from the middle-tier Jr. National team (formerly known as the White team) to the highest-level National team.
Pickard Jr. enrolled at IMG in the summer of 2024 with no promises that a move up was likely or even possible.
“They said, basically, nobody does that,” Kristen Pickard, Steven’s mother, recalling what the school initially told her family about the possibility of moving to the top team. “I think he took that as a personal challenge.”
IMG Academy, located in Bradenton, Florida, is an internationally recognized boarding school where elite level athletes enroll in hopes of reaching the next level – whether that be college or, depending on the sport, professional ranks. The football teams – of which there are three – are consistently ranked among the best in Florida and the country.
A consensus three-star prospect, according to Rivals, ESPN and 247Sports, Pickard Jr. approached the opportunity with the same mindset that has defined his journey. It was never a question of if he would achieve his goal – only how and when.
“I knew that the aspirations I have wouldn't be accomplished if I couldn't do it,” Pickard Jr. said. “That was just my focus all year after a certain point.”
While he could have centered his attention on college offers or his ultimate dream of playing in the National Football League, Pickard Jr.’s sole focus became making the top team at IMG. The rest, he believed, would follow.
“I think the way his mindset works is he’s always kind of like, ‘Let me get my foot in the door and I’ll get there,’” Kristen Pickard said. “It’s the same thing when he was trying to make varsity as an underclassman. Like, ‘Let me get my foot in the door…I just need a shot.’”
Pickard Jr. was always a big kid—11 pounds at birth, according to his mother—but wasn’t always the most technically sound. Once he surpassed the 6-foot-4 mark—a common benchmark for offensive linemen looking to play at the next level—his father, Steven Pickard Sr., saw the potential and sought out position-specific training.
Living in Charleston, South Carolina, the Pickards found no offensive line–focused training in their city or state. But after some research, they discovered Velocity Athlete Development in Georgia.
Pickard Sr. recounted when he and Pickard Jr. attended a Clemson camp where they observed two athletes who stood out from the pack—Kail Ellis (now at Auburn) and Bear McWhorter (a 2026 Michigan commit).
“So you go on Twitter and you're like, who are these kids?” Pickard Sr. said. “And they both were connected to Velocity. That was part of the research—these kids were not only getting the attention of Clemson coaches going into their sophomore year, but they looked so much better than their peers.”
The Pickards made their first visit to Velocity shortly thereafter.
“Christmas breaks, spring breaks, winter break—whatever break it was,” Pickard Sr. said. “We found a way to get here.”
Before Pickard Jr.’s first season at IMG, the father and son made Atlanta their summer home base. They lived in a hotel for 55 nights, spending the rest of the summer traveling to camps across the country.
Training, camps, recovery, film study—on repeat. From Velocity to college campuses and back again.
“I was seeing the results. I was getting quicker. I was driving dudes off the ball, pancaking them,” Pickard Jr. said of his progress after training with Velocity. “That’s when I was like, alright, this is where I want to stay.”
Even during his first season at IMG, Velocity coach Luke Schultheiss stayed in contact. He would video call every weekend to review game film—a routine they plan to continue through Pickard Jr.’s senior year.
This summer, the entire Pickard family temporarily relocated to Georgia, spending nearly eight weeks in an Airbnb so Steven and his younger brother Michael could train at Velocity. The two logged more than 130 combined hours of sports performance and offensive line–specific work.
Now, with his final high school season on the horizon, Pickard Jr. looks to the next challenge. And once again, with his family, IMG and the Velocity team around him, it’s not a question of if—but when and how.