Team First: Emile Picarella’s State Title Ambitions Outshine Recruiting Process

by: William Weathers // GeauxPreps.com Contributor

A year ago, this was all new to Emile Picarella. 

After growing up in Mississippi, where he attended St. Joseph Catholic Academy in Madison, Picarella made a family-related move to Baton Rouge and enrolled at University High – home of one of the state’s top football programs. 

He immersed himself in his new playbook, learned his new teammates, and played from behind – sharing time in the preseason – until taking over the team’s No. 1 job for the start of the season and leading the Cubs to an 11-2 record and the Division III select state semifinals. 

The 6-foot-2, 210-pound Picarella completed 71% (135 of 189) of his passes for a school-record 2,312 yards with 34 touchdowns and three interceptions, setting the stage for a senior season where expectations will be even higher.

U-High battled eventual Division III state champion St. Charles Catholic on even terms for the majority of the game with the difference – a field goal – coming in overtime that sent the Comets to the state championship.

“We all know our goal and that’s to win state,” Picarella said. “We came up short last year and we felt we should have won it.”

Picarella’s family moved last summer with his first workout at U-High taking place June 1. The Cubs featured a talented mix of running backs and wide receivers behind a talented offensive line, a scenario that will be the case this season with Picarella having the comfort of the 2023 season to build on. 

He now has a complete grip on offensive coordinator Aaron Vice’s playbook, enabling him to play faster and more relaxed, while developing chemistry with two new wide receivers from a year ago. 

“I know how the system works,” Picarella said. “I know what we want to do on offense. I’m so much more comfortable with the guys. Meeting new people is awesome and a great change. It’s been a great experience.

“I’m a quarterback and you have to be able to adapt and meet new people,” Picarella said. “It’s creating chemistry with other guys. That’s what I love doing. When you see those people every day it becomes natural.”

U-High football coach Andy Martin praised Picarella’s work last season which has carried over into the team’s offseason, and participation in the Robert Graves Metro Baton Rouge 7-on-7 League last month.

“He really had to dive into the playbook which he did, and you saw him get more and more comfortable,” he said. “This year you see it out there. He’s so poised. He’s seeing his wide receivers, he’s got a great relationship with them. He hasn’t missed a beat. He’s just doing really great things, and a lot of it is because he knows the offense so much better and he’s trusting his wide receivers.

“He’s coachable,” he said. “You never know what you’re going to get when they do come in, and the biggest thing is he took to coaching right away. (Offensive coordinator) Coach Vice did a great job with him and made sure he understood what was going on. He’s really taken off since then. I want him to be the leader on the field for the offense. That’s what we ask him to do and he’s doing a good job of that.”

Picarella said his introduction and success last season were in part due to playing with great teammates such as graduating senior linebacker Harry Beacham (Navy signee), senior wide receivers Seth Gayles and Granville Anderson, and rising senior running back/linebacker Keylan Moses (LSU commit).

“When you’re surrounded by guys like those it’s easy to do my job,” Picarella said. “They made me a better player.”

U-High split its first two games of the 2023 season, losing 20-17 at Class 5A Archbishop Rummel then the Cubs returned home to host Class 5A Catholic High, the eventual Division I select state champions.

Picarella completed 19 of 33 passes for 257 yards and three touchdowns and the Cubs, after a roughing the kicker penalty on a late field goal attempt, got a field goal from Anderson with no time left for a 31-30 victory. 

“We had to bounce back, and we had our best week of practice against Catholic,” Picarella said. “I think that’s where things started to click for me. We played great that game and ended up winning.”

U-High reeled off nine consecutive wins, scoring more than 40-plus points in each game, to reach the third round of the playoffs against St. Charles. 

Martin believes the best of Picarella is still to come.

“Last year he set a school record in yards, so that’s not out of the realm again this year,” he said. “In Year 2, his understanding is a little bit better, seeing what can happen in front of him. I think we have a pretty good O-line and running back. We have a good overall group that’s going to help him out, so we’re not just relying on him. We are looking for big things from him.”

Picarella has prepared himself accordingly. 

For three years, including his first two at St. Joseph where he passed for 2,160 yards and 20 TDs in 2022, Picarella witnessed the team’s seniors providing guidance and direction for that year’s team.

This year, it’s his turn and he can’t wait. 

“I’ve watched other guys lead and just learned from them,” Picarella said. “The motivation is going out with a bang and leaving with a ring on my finger.”

The line between team success and personal achievements remains unobscured, Picarella said. 

He puts in the work during the week with his teammates, trying to become an effective unit going into August camp where high school teams eye the start of their respective season. 

Picarella’s also working toward finding a home in college, landing his first college scholarship in the eighth grade from Oregon. 

“That was a crazy day,” he said.

Picarella subsequently received offers from Akron, Boston College, Houston, Kentucky, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Louisville, Mississippi State, and Pittsburgh. The three-star prospect rated the nation’s No. 28 quarterback and state’s No. 18 player by Rivals.com, has also attended camps and thrown for offensive coordinators at Arkansas State, Southern Mississippi, and Tulane. 

“You’ve just got to find a school that wants you the most,” Picarella said. “It’s all about if you like the atmosphere and culture. To see if it fits you as a person and as a football player.”

“I’m not really thinking about the recruiting stuff right now,” Picarella said. “I know this is my last year of high school. I’m going to try and work as hard as I can, get as fast and as strong as I can. I want to enjoy that with the guys and win as many games as possible.”