Even though it was one of the biggest nights of his life, a teammate of late LSU wide receiver Kyren Lacy paid tribute after being selected by the New England Patriots.
The Patriots were in need of some desperate offensive line help to protect their young quarterback, Drake Maye.
So with pick No. 4 in the draft, they took Louisiana native and LSU star Will Campbell.
Campbell, seen as one of the top offensive line prospects in the draft, strutted out onto the stage wearing a green pinstriped suit.
On that suit, he wore a white pin with a purple No. 2 on it – an homage to the number that Lacy wore at LSU.
While Campbell didn’t address Lacy in a post-selection interview, the pin was in clear view throughout his discussion.
The New England Patriots picked LSU offensive lineman Will Campbell at fourth overall
In his post-selection interview, Campbell was seen with a No. 2 pin in honor of Kyren Lacy
The receiver declared for the NFL draft back in December and was tipped to be a possible early-round pick.
But Lacy had also been facing criminal charges stemming from a fatal car accident in Louisiana last December that had clouded his NFL prospects.
In that accident, which killed a 78-year-old man in Lafourche Parish, Louisiana, Lacy was allegedly was driving recklessly – speeding and passing in a no-passing zone – when a motorist who was swerving to avoid Lacy’s Dodge Charger crashed head-on into another vehicle.
Herman Hall of Thibodaux, who was involved in the head-on crash, died after being transported to a hospital, a state police report said.
Authorities with State Police Troop C in Gray, Louisiana, said Lacy fled the scene of the accident without calling for help. Lacy was ultimately booked with negligent homicide, felony hit-and-run and reckless operation of a vehicle on January 13.
Lacy’s case was set to be heard by a grand jury on Monday, less than 48 hours after his reported death.
That was a backdrop to the incidents of April 12.
The former LSU wide receiver reportedly took his own life at the age of 24 earlier this month
Lacy is seen with his father at his LSU graduation. The prospect had previously been charged with negligent homicide in a separate incident.
At around 11:15 pm, a weapons disturbance is said to have been reported near Houston by one of Lacy’s family members. The woman told police that they got into a verbal altercation before he fired a weapon at the ground.
Lacy then fled the scene, but did not comply with cops when they later identified his car and tried to stop him.
Police told TMZ that Lacy’s car ultimately crashed, and cops found him dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound when they tried to extract him from the vehicle.
Multiple tributes to Lacy from former teammates – like Jayden Daniels and Malik Nabers – and NFL stars like Dak Prescott have begun to fill in.
Last season, Lacy put up 866 receiving yards and nine touchdowns.
