He played college football for the Tennessee Volunteers, earning first-team All-American honors in 1991.
He also excelled at basketball, averaging 27 points per game and attracting the interest of many college programs.
[2] Pickens played college football for the University of Tennessee from 1989 to 1991, where he started his career as a safety and was named a Freshman All-American and All-SEC selection.
[3] He moved to wide receiver, where he caught 109 passes for 1,875 yards and 13 touchdowns, and made the College Football All-America Team as a junior.
[4] His college receiving statistics were: In 2023, Pickens was inducted into the Tennessee Athletics Hall of Fame.
[9] He recorded 26 receptions for 326 yards and one touchdown in 16 games and ten starts as a rookie.
[12] In Week 8 of the 1993 season against the Oilers, he had seven receptions for 127 yards in the loss for his first game over the century mark in the NFL.
[20] From 1994 to 1995, Pickens became the first NFL player to record at least five receptions and a receiving touchdown in eight straight games.
[27] In Week 4 of the 1998 season, Pickens had seven receptions for 120 yards and two touchdowns in a loss to the Ravens.
This was a loyalty clause that the Bengals created and added to Pickens's contract which would cause him to forfeit all or some of his signing bonus if he insulted the organization in public.
[39] Pickens was arrested January 5, 2014, for allegedly assaulting his wife after the two argued on a movie date.