When Duce Chestnut originally committed to Syracuse in 2020, he was the highest rated recruit in a decade. So when he transferred out in 2022 and decided to play for Louisiana State, it was that much more painful for the program and the fans.
In his first two seasons at Syracuse, Chestnut became a household name for Orange faithful. But when former defensive coordinator Tony White and safeties coach Nick Monroe left the program after the 2022 season, Chestnut wasn’t far behind.
“Coach White was my main recruiter along with Coach Monroe,” Chestnut said. “So, with Coach White leaving, it was like a decision in my mind, like, ‘do I want to stay here or do I want to go somewhere where I can possibly go to my dream school?’ ”
That dream school was LSU. Chestnut was stepping into a program that had national championship aspirations in 2023.
“You see the guys over there at LSU make a name for themselves like Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas and Jayden Daniels,” Chestnut said. “So, like, just to get in the mindset, it’s like competing every play. No plays off. “
But the Tigers fell short of a championship, with Chestnut fighting through a shoulder injury that saw him play in just two games for LSU. With the coaching change in 2023 in Syracuse that saw new head coach Fran Brown come in, Chestnut decided to rekindle a relationship with Brown that started long ago in Camden, New Jersey.
This is as close as blood is going to get,” Brown said. “We just understand he’s a good kid that I care about a lot. I care about Duce more as a person than football, you know, because you only play football if he’s lucky, you know, some more years. But I know he’ll be able to become a good father and a good man. I want him to be a good husband one day.”
“With Coach Fran taking the job, I came back to be with my guys; a lot of guys from Camden are here and I want to put on for the city,” Chestnut said. “So to come back to Syracuse and do that was big for me.”
His return was a welcome sight for many like Alijah Clark, who also knew Chestnut in Camden.