Louisville football: 5 players who may start as backups but finish as starters

Renato Brown – OG/OT

Scott Satterfield and the new Louisville football staff were able to beat out the likes of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, amongst other powerhouse programs just a few months into their tenure for three-star offensive lineman Renato Brown.

For an offensive line that has less than 10 scholarship players currently listed on the 2019 roster, a guy like Brown, who is already college-ready in terms of size at 6’3, 310-pounds, could be thrust into early playing time regardless of how ready he is.

Satterfield has talked about the struggles of barely having enough players on the line to go two deep and how getting the incoming freshmen like Brown, Zach Williamson, Jackson Gregory, and Joshua Black is paramount for success in 2019.

Though the team was able to bring in former Florida starter T.J. McCoy to play center, they have just four other offensive linemen with experience – meaning that positions are up for grabs. And while Brown is listed as a third-string guard at this point in time (according to the media guide depth chart) fall camp should cause some shakeup.

After committing to Louisville, Brown shared the recruiting pitch from Satterfield and the new staff, saying:

"“The coaches (at Louisville) told me that I can fight for playing time right away. I like how it is a fresh start, with new coaches. I liked how the players are all excited for the upcoming season and wanting to go out and win some games.”"

Just looking at the offers for Brown you can see that there is a lot of talent there, and without much proven depth or even starters for that matter, seeing a guy like Brown make his way onto the field mid-way into the season or late in the year wouldn’t come as a shock.