Way-too-early Louisville football depth chart preview: Linebackers

Louisville football: Next men up

Card – Zay Peterson/Trenell Troutman (Fr.)/(Jr.)

Inside – Dorian Jones (RS Fr.)

Outside – Kameron Wilson (Fr.)

Outside – PJ Blue (Sr.) 

Outside – Thurman Geathers/Allen Smith (RS So.)/(RS Fr.)

The difference between the 2020 Louisville football defense and the 2019 Louisville football defense will be about the quality of player and talent level at the middle and bottom of the depth chart. Last year, when starters came out of the game for rest or injury there was an obvious gap of production and it was in that time that opponents like Notre Dame, Miami, Kentucky would take advantage and hit with big plays forcing Satterfield & Bryan Brown to keep their starters in way longer than they should.

I say all that as a preface because we’re on the third page of linebackers who will compete for snaps in 2020 and we’re just now getting to the team’s star recruit from the incoming class, a former starter returning from a major injury, and a few young players who will be stepping onto the field for the first time as contributors who came into the program with a lot of fanfare.

Several freshmen and redshirt freshmen will see the field this season as backups and it all starts with four-star Kam Wilson. The Georgia product was easily the biggest riser in the Cards class and after enrolling-early, going through spring practice, and working with the coaching staff for a few extra months, Wilson now finds himself in a place to see the field and produce right away.

Pass-rush has to be one of the biggest focuses this offseason and Wilson should be able to help out with that thanks to his speed and power off the edge. Another guy who will be able to help off the edge is senior linebacker, P.J. Blue, who will return to the field this season after missing the entire 2019 campaign with a knee injury.

Blue brings experience to the table, including four starts back in 2018, as well as another guy capable of making plays off the edge in both the run and passing games. He’s now dealt with two major injuries, so you wonder how much that will impact his play, but if he’s healthy the Cards will have another playmaker to help get things turned around.

Another linebacker who will look to bounce back from injury is Dorian Jones, who tore his ACL in the first snap of his career against Miami late last year. It was a huge blow for both Jones and Louisville, but assuming he’s healthy when the season kicks off (which is a huge question mark) or at least some point in the season – he’ll give the linebackers even more versatility and power.

Jones is just a year and a half removed from being named the Sentinel’s Broward County Class 5A-1A defensive Player of the Year following a MONSTER season where he had122 tackles, including 29 tackles for loss, nine sacks, and an interception. Our good friend Keith Wynne acknowledged on the Big Red Louie Podcast that he could be a huge addition this season to the linebacking core and even could be the future at inside linebacker. Getting him healthy is key.

The Card linebacker spot will have just as much depth as the other spots among the linebackers, but behind Burns, things get dicey in terms of experience. As we mentioned, Dallas will step onto the field for the first time as a JUCO transfer as will incoming freshman Zay Peterson while junior Trenell Troutman will be learning and adjusting to his new position after moving over from safety.

Both players will probably play limited roles in 2020, as Peterson could be a redshirt candidate after playing in the maximum four guys, while Troutman will probably float back and forth between safety and special teams as needed. Either way, both bring high-level hitting power – especially Troutman as we saw last season, as well as versatility which will be invaluable for the Cards defense.

Redshirt sophomore Thurman Geathers and redshirt freshman Allen Smith will both also be looking to get onto the field for the first time in their careers. Geathers is a guy that many football experts have quietly talked about behind the scenes and he’s a player with football in his DNA who could be ready contribute after a year of learning and watching. Smith has added nearly 25-pounds courtesy of the Mike Sirignano work out plan. He’s another player capable of bringing speed and sure firing tackling to a defense that struggled at times to bring down runners in the open field.

This group is experienced, fast, and hungry. Watch out ACC.