Adarius Pickett signs with Montreal, no longer part of UCLA staff

The former Second Team All-Pac-12 safety was a graduate assistant during the Bruins' spring camp

Adarius Pickett's professional football dream is still alive, which means he'll be taking another break from the Bruins.

The former UCLA football safety signed a contract with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League on June 9 following a string of training camp, preseason and practice squad stints with the Chicago Bears, Los Angeles Chargers and New England Patriots. Since he had not been on a professional roster since July 2020, Pickett rejoined UCLA as a volunteer analyst last fall before becoming a defensive graduate assistant coach in January.

A UCLA spokesperson has confirmed Pickett is no longer part of the staff, however, due to his commitments in the CFL. Pickett had been pursuing a graduate degree in Transformative Coaching and Leadership at UCLA's School of Education, and while he did not complete it prior to signing with the Alouettes, he still plans on returning to finish it at a later date.

As a member of the Bruins' coaching staff, Pickett brought a palpable energy to the field during the spring practices that were open to the media. He would often hang back with punt returners in the early morning special teams drills, guiding receivers Kyle Philips and Logan Loya alongside running backs coach DeShaun Foster.

Pickett played four seasons in Westwood, his last coming in 2018 when he led all FBS defensive backs in tackles with 123 and earned a spot on the Second Team All-Pac-12. He would then go undrafted at the 2019 NFL Draft and spend the next year-plus bouncing around from one NFL team to another, never making it into a regular season game at the next level.

There are two other former UCLA players on Montreal's roster – defensive lineman Datone Jones and punter Matt Mengel. Jones' top honor with the Bruins was the same as Pickett's, a Second Team All-Pac-12 nod in 2012, while Mengel attempted 113 punts in 25 career games at UCLA.

Pickett and Mengel were teammates in Westwood from 2014-2015.

According to a training camp spotlight Q&A Pickett had with the Alouettes, UCLA assistant head coach Brian Norwood introduced him to the idea of joining the seven-time Grey Cup champions. Norwood was on the staff at Baylor from 2008-2014, where he coached current Alouettes cornerback Patrick Levels.

However long Pickett spends north of the border, he'll find his way back to Los Angeles at one point or another.

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