Louisville football: The 50 greatest Cardinals of all time

No player made a more profound impact on Louisville football’s defense than “Big Play” Ray Buchanan.

Noting that he got his swagger from watching and admiring NFL great Deion Sanders, Buchanan loved to trash talk, make big plays, and dance and bring a little attitude to the Cards in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Buchanan,  5-foot-10 athlete out of Chicago, was recruited by Howard Schnellenberger to play wide receiver, but upon arrival to Louisville was moved to safety.

“I had played some safety in high school, but it was a shock to me,” Buchanan told the Chicago Tribune in 1993. “I wanted the big spotlight at the time. I wanted the ball. They just decided to make me work to get it.”

The position change paid dividends for Buchanan, who went on to become the team’s defensive MVP and earn defensive MVP honors as a sophomore in the 1991 Fiesta Bowl.

Buchanan earned two All-American nods during his time with the Cardinals, including a 1991 Playboy Preseason All-American honor. His 15 career interceptions were a record at the time. They still remain tied for third all-time for most career interceptions as a Card.

After college, Buchanan was drafted in the third round by the Indianapolis Colts and went on to play 11 seasons in the league, racking up 819 tackles, 47 interceptions and earning a Pro Bowl bid in 1998 with the Atlanta Falcons.