Louisville football’s biggest recruiting needs, and the most likely players to fill them

Offensive Line

First, and foremost, for Louisville’s new staff is going to be shoring up the offensive line play. The Cards’s big guys up front appeared to be one of the team’s strengths heading into the season, but we quickly realized that, even with more talent, they were going to be the offensive line of old. There is no question that there is talent there, it is a matter of developing the talent and molding them into the squad that we know they can be.

Enter new offensive coordinator, and offensive line guru, Dwayne Ledford. Ledford came into a pretty similar situation at NC State three years ago, and turned a line with not much hope in 2015 into one of the nation’s best for the last three years.

Scott Satterfield has a similar philosophy to Ledford, who was on his staff at Appalachian State before moving to Raleigh. Both coaches know that, in order to have a successful offense, it starts up front.

Departures:

Lukayas McNeil, Linwood Foy, Kenny Thomas

Significant Returnees:

Cole Bentley, Mekhi Becton, Ronald Rudd, Robbie Bell, Caleb Chandler

The returnees could honestly make up a solid starting offensive line going into 2019. Bell, who started at center in 2017, was hobbled in the spring going into 2018 and somehow made it onto the mysterious list of guys Bobby Petrino never played this season for no apparent reason. Look for Bell to move back to the center spot in 2019, and 2018 center Cole Bentley to slide back to a more natural position on the line.

Becton is an obvious starter and likely 3-and-done type of player. Mix in Ronald Rudd, who saw time in 2018, and Caleb Chandler- a relatively unknown talent who got his first start ever at Clemson this year- and you have a talented core. Adonis Boone and Nate Scheler figure to add to the mix as well, but Louisville will really miss the depth and leadership of the three veterans they are losing.

Current Commits:

Zach Williamson and Ty Murray comprise 66% of the players that Satterfield looked at and decided he wanted to move forward with. Both players bring elite size to the table. It is hard to base a mid-level recruit’s potential off of their performances against kids that they just physically dominate every down. However, Murray was heavily recruited by Satterfield at Appalachian State, and the Cards beat out West Virginia for Williamson.

There is a lot to like about Murray and Williamson, but the Cards are in on a couple of instant-impact players.

Potential Recruits:

Triston Miller was a long-time NC State commit who very recently opened his recruiting back up, and guess who’s coming to town? That’s right, Dwayne Ledford, who was the main recruiter for Miller, a tackle rated as high as a four star and top 250 in the nation by some scouting services. There is likely a long way to go in Millers recruitment, but he is a guy that Ledford loves, and could come to Louisville and push for a starting job day one a la Becton and Bell.

Additionally, it appears that Louisville is in the mix for Liam Dick, a kid from Canada. I don’t even need to know any more. Aside from being way too polite, Canadian kids are known for being totally bad ass. If you need more justification, Dick is 6-7, 300+ pounds, and Washington State, UNC, and Fresno State, among others, are in on him.

Look for Dick and Miller to take priority for Ledford. If the Cards can land those two, it could go a long way towards the immediate success of Louisville’s offense next year.