It seems like Louisville comes onto the national college football scene and vanishes from it quicker than the speed of light. Once you feel like there's a brand building, it all collapses. Granted, this is a helluva collapse.
The Cardinals went from Heisman winner and multiple NFL draftees to some guy named "Puma Pass" real frickin' quick. Is there hope? Probably not for a while.
It's a tough ask for new coach Scott Satterfield to scrounge up a recruiting class. Nonetheless, here's what he did.
2019 Class:
ACC Rank: 14
Top Recruit: Ja'Darien Boykin, DE, Gray GA (0.8977)
As a senior, Boykin had 13 sacks in 11 games. A dominant speed rusher, Boykin fits the modern mold for what you want in a pass rushing DE. The defensive line is, arguably, the toughest position group for a true freshman to be impactful in. The size and strength is one area of concern, but defensive lineman are asked to do so much more than rush the passer of clog up the middle in this era of spread offenses. Still, Boykin is one of those athletes that you just need to put on the field. At 6'2" 235, he's not far off playing size. For a roster that is, quite frankly, void of much talent, Boykin was a massive pickup.
Biggest Need: QB
Okay so in reality the answer is "everything". But, you gotta start somewhere in this rebuilding process.
Last season, QB Juwan "Puma" Pass was 14th in QB rating in the ACC. He was also tied for most interceptions thrown with 12. He was also 13th in completion percentage at 54%. So basically, he stunk.
Louisville currently has three QB's on the roster, one of which is Evan Conley (0.8247, Marietta GA). Conley is an early enrollee who was originally committed to Appalachian State, who at the time was coached by now Louisville coach Scott Satterfield. Coming out of spring practices, it seems like Conley has the arm tools to play in the ACC but is a work in progress as a decision maker. Any sort of improvement over the summer and you could see him make his way onto the field as the starter before the end of the season.
Most Exciting Recruit: Aidan Robbins, RB, Louisville KY (0.8581)
There's something that is just so satisfying about a big, physical running back. It's just pretty watching them run over people. Robbins is a 6'2" 225lbs. all-purpose back from right in UofL's backyard. He'll demand carries right away, and there's nothing better for a struggling passing game than a solid running game. Maybe more than anything though, Robbins has the potential to be one of the faces of the program. Everyone likes a hometown kid, and a feature running back can boost an offense unlike any other position. Robbins has been enrolled this spring and all signs point to him being the real deal.
Early Contributor: Aidan Robbins
I really tried to dig deep and come up with someone who could contribute right away, but there's no major sign of anyone but Robbins getting significant playing time in week 1. There will be opportunities for guys to show out though. After a tough test against Notre Dame in week 1, the Cardinals get Eastern Kentucky and Western Kentucky. Western Kentucky is far from a guaranteed win, especially since Louisville only won by 3 last year. There's open spots basically everywhere on the roster, but not much in the way of talent to fill those voids. Robbins has 1,000 yard-back potential, and he should start gaining yards in week 1.
Sam's Grade: C-
Louisville needed to grab a handful of guys that could play right away. They didn't. There also just simply isn't enough signees. 14 true freshman plus 3 transfers. Next year's class is really the year that Louisville need to hit the ground hard though. They'll run out of bodies soon if they don't. All that being said, Satterfield did get some decent players, and was able to swing his QB from his previous job at App State. Are the dog days over? Eh, probably not. But Louisville's roster is better today than it was this time last year.
Comments
Satterfield is a good coach but Louisville is going to be bad for at least the next 2-4 years. Luckily we dont overlap too much in recruiting, but feel like they wont be able to dig out of their hole like FSU will bc of traditionally poor recruiting classes.
The Puma conundrum is odd. They were pretty high on him taking the reigns post-Lamar. Has talent...ifff he has people around him. Logan looked 1st rd good with the immense talent around him in 2011...not without. Louisville clearly doesn't have much around him, but with the amount of money boosters put into the stadium upgrades here lately, idk if he'll be able to withstand the heat (I'm typing like he's a coach, but lord knows he hears it all the same).
They only thing that might save him is that as a conference the ACC isnt great right now. Lots of mediocre teams around. Just look what Bronco was able to do at UVA. With the lack of talent that UofL had last year they still almost beat FSU. They need a decent class next year, but they're not so far out of things that they cant get respectable quickly.
Next year Louisville has maybe the most open scholarship slots in the Power 5. I expect them to hit the Portal pretty hard to get some talent/experience.