Louisville football: Commitments begin to roll in after big recruiting weekend

Scott Satterfield and the Louisville football program had 15ish visitors on campus this weekend and have already landed two commitments.

Each day becomes more and more important for new Louisville football head coach Scott Satterfield and his staff as National Signing Day is just two weeks away. Heading into the weekend, the Cards had six members in the 2019 recruiting class with around 10 more spots to fill.

As more and more players received offers from the Cardinals in the class of 2019, getting them on campus for official visits was crucial if they had any chance of making up ground late. That’s exactly why this weekend, and next weekend, were so important for the Cards.

This weekend Louisville had multiple three and even four star positions slated to visit, headlined by Ja’Darien Boykin, who was and still is on commitment watch, Tyler Devera, who our own Presley Meyer wrote could be Louisville’s next gem at tight end, Jamious Griffin, and Jackson Gregory.

Within hours of these players leaving, the Cardinals and Scott Satterfield have already secured tow big commitments.

The first came early on Sunday morning from Ohio offensive lineman/defensive lineman Jackson Gregory, who took to Twitter to announce his decision.

The 6’3, 290 pound center out of Westlake, Ohio is the definition of a diamond in the rough. Up until this weekend, Gregory didn’t even have a recruiting profile on either 247 Sports, ESPN, or Rivals. His only offers prior to Louisville came from the likes of Findlay College, and Saginaw Valley, not exactly the impressive list of suitors that we’re used to for top targets.

But when you put on the film of Gregory, you see why the staff was willing to take a chance. He’s a physical kid who has a good amount of athleticism, something the new staff looks for in their offensive lineman. With only two experienced centers on the roster in Robbie Bell and Cole Bentley, landing a player like Gregory was extremely important.

You can watch Gregory’s full highlight tape here.

With Bell returning back to the lineup after missing all of 2018-19, it’s likely that the center position is his to lose, but don’t be surprised if Gregory pushes Bell to the limit. Regardless of who is the starter, having depth at each offensive line position is crucial.

The second commit of the day came from JUCO linebacker Monty Montgomery, who has spent the last year playing for Hutchinson Community College. Montgomery, who is listed as 2 star prospect, was previously committed to Arkansas State before decomitting just a few weeks back.

Much like Gregory, Montgomery’s offer sheet isn’t what Louisville fans are used to, holding offers from several mid-major programs including Southern Miss, UTSA, and South Alabama. But clearly there was something the staff saw in the 5’11, 218 linebacker.

Montgomery is currently listed as the 353rd best junior college player in the country, and the number 21 outside linebacker according to 247 Sports. Montgomery joins Dorian Jones and Allen Smith, who committed after visiting the Cards last weekend.

Speaking with Cardinal Authority’s Jody Demling, Montgomery said about his commitment:

"“The whole environment is just so smooth. I’m so excited and I’m glad (the process) is over. I can’t wait to get here and start.”"

Though a bit undersized, Montgomery is an athletic, playmaker, who brings speed and hard hitting to the linebacker position for Louisville. In the few highlights I watched, Montgomery shows great ability to diagnose plays and get to the right spot in a hurry. He has the ability to rush the passer and play the run equally well, and can also drop back into coverage on running backs and tight ends as needed.

Montgomery is another big time under the radar prospect, who even after putting together a big season at Hutchinson CC, was overlooked by Power Five schools. He finished his one and only season at Hutch with 78 tackless, 7 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, 3 interceptions, and two defensive touchdowns, earning him the 2018 Jayhawk Conference Defensive Player of the Year award.

You can check out Montgomery’s highlights here.

After only playing one season in Kansas, Montgomery will have three seasons of eligibility remaining and will be able to play right away for the Cards.

3:45PM: We got some more good news this afternoon that sort of came out of left field. For the second time in six months Louisville has landed a transfer from Vanderbilt.

A few weeks before the 2018-19 season started, Vanderbilt OT and former St. X graduate, Wyatt Smock, announced that he’d be headed back home to play for the Cards.

Today, graduate transfer OL Ean Pfeifer announced that’d be doing the same. Pfeier, who sat out this past season, played two years at Vanderbilt as an offensive guard/tackle. While it would make sense for him to play the same position here at Louisville, he instead will make a switch and will come to the Cards as a TE.

Pfeifer will be eligible right away for Louisville and will have two yards left to play. He is now the second tight end on the roster for the Cards, joining former Texas A&M transfer Jordan Davis. The redshirt junior is listed on the Vanderbilt team roster as being 6’4, 300 pounds.

9:25PM: I am way late on this one, but I had to be out and about with the family like typical Sunday’s. Nonetheless I thought it was important to provide some insight on the Cardinals fourth commitment of the day.

Offensive line was undoubtedly one of the most important positions of focus for the new Louisville football staff as Bobby Petrino completely neglected it over the last few recruiting cycles (no worries, we have 20+ receivers though).

Coming into his official visit to Louisville 3 star offensive guard Joshua Black was committed Georgia Tech. But after meeting with the coaching staff and getting to see the campus and vision for the program, Black took to Twitter to announce he was backing off said commitment.

In a matter of a few minutes Black announced he was committing to Satterfield and the Cards, making him the fourth offensive line commit in the class of 2019. As our own Ross Prophater pointed out, Black is a great fit for the new Louisville offense. Being committed to play at Georgia Tech and Paul Johnson’s triple option scheme, Black is quick and nimble enough to be a solid run blocker.

Black held offers Wake Forest, South Carolina and Georgia Tech and is ranked as the 144th best offensive tackle in the country and a composite three star recruit by 247 Sports.

Scott Satterfield and the Cardinals now have 10 players signed or committed in the 2019 class and have roughly seven scholarships left to fill.