After three seasons as a pitcher for LSU’s baseball program, Nick Storz made the tough decision to leave the pitcher’s mound behind and put all his focus into Tigers football.
Storz already has one season of LSU football under his belt, having joined the team in summer 2020 as a tight end, the same position he played in high school. He played in all 10 games of the 2020 season as a member of the punt coverage unit, and he appeared in the starting offensive lineup for the final bout of the season against Ole Miss.
While he is no stranger to Tiger Stadium, the decision to transition fully to football was a somewhat unexpected shift.
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“Ever since I got to LSU, the thought of playing football for the Tigers always crossed my mind,” Storz says. “It actually got brought up a couple of times my first year here. I was always interested, but I wanted to give baseball its fair shot and give that 100% of my time.”
But once the pandemic reached Baton Rouge and the remainder of the 2020 baseball season was canceled, Storz decided to take full advantage of the chance to play football.
“I reached out to (Director of Athletic Training) Jack Marucci, and he was the one who actually set up the meeting between me and Coach O. I told him I would love to have the opportunity to join the football team, and he said he would love to give me a shot. I worked out with the football team that summer, and they put me on scholarship. It’s been a blessing.”
A native of Brooklyn, New York, Storz was a top draft prospect right out of high school. He was selected by the Detroit Tigers in the 31st round of the 2017 MLB Draft. But he was attracted by the prospects of a different team of Tigers, and he elected to enroll at LSU and play college baseball instead.
Storz was an effective pitcher for LSU, but he regularly battled injuries that limited his amount of play time and resulted in three arm-related surgeries.
While those injuries were a serious setback for his baseball career, he is optimistic they will not hamper his performance as a tight end, and he has been hard at work preparing for this new challenge.
“Obviously, baseball and football are two totally different types of training,” Storz says. “It’s more of a physical mindset on the football side of things, so that’s the biggest difference in terms of coaching. I consider myself more of a run-blocking tight end, and when you play in the SEC, you have to be able to compete. I just wanted to get faster and stronger overall.”
Weighing 260 pounds and standing at 6-feet-5-inches, Storz’s imposing build should make him a welcome addition to the team, providing crucial depth in the tight end position.
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All things considered, Storz believes there are great things on the horizon for him and his teammates as he looks ahead to the upcoming season.
“This year has been a total change (for LSU football),” Storz says. “Everybody is a lot more dedicated, focused and ready to go for this season. There’s a different feel in the building. Everybody has one goal in mind, and that’s proving who we are again. The new coordinators are awesome—creative, hands-on and high-energy. It’s going to be a fun season.”
This article was originally published in the Tiger Pride 2021 issue of 225 magazine.