Louisville football: Cards land monster 2021 wide receiver

What Huggins brings to Louisville football

Huggins-Bruce is arguably one of the biggest gets for Louisville football in the 2021 class. In an offensive group that seems pretty blue collar, Huggins has a chance to come in and shake things up with his athleticism and speed.

The 6’1,” 170-pound multi-faceted receiver is rated as the second-best player in the state of South Carolina according to Rivals.com, and the No. 470 player nationally according to 247Sports.

After watching some of his tape, Huggins-Bruce will become one of your favorite players in the 2021 class. He has electric speed and is adept at creating separation similarly to current Louisville football receiver Tutu Atwell.

What makes Huggins-Bruce such a highly sought-after prospect, however, is his excellent footwork and route-running skills. He has breakaway speed, but he’s not afraid to finish a play through contact as well.

Huggins-Bruce projects as a slot receiver, but he can really line up anywhere. Playing for his highschool in Dillon, SC, he lines up in the slot, out wide, and is involved in a lot of sweep plays where he is dangerous as a player in motion.

It seems way too obvious to keep making comparisons to Tutu Atwell, but that feels like it is exactly where Louisville football will use Huggins when the suits up for the Cards.

Ahmari Huggins highlights

We’ve talked a lot about Atwell’s breakaway speed and ability to shift gears. That’s exactly what Huggins does in his breaks. He is quick, but he doesn’t even have to put a foot in the ground or do something super shifty to gain separation, he just puts on the jets and he has a step on the defender every time.

Huggins is obviously a slot guy, but he is not tiny either. He could very easily add a little weight, and in doing so, provide the staff an option all over the field.

Although he has that straight line speed, he doesn’t lack shiftiness either. His ability to make the defender look like a fool is pretty impressive, and he gets multiple guys taking the wrong angle before he gets into the clear on numerous occasions.

If there’s a concern for Huggins right away, maybe it’s his hands. He reminds me a ton of James Quick in the way that his offensive coordinator in high school opts to just get the ball in his hands and let him go to work.

We saw when Quick got to college there were concerns with his ability to bring in catches, but his elusiveness was ridiculous enough that it didn’t matter.

We do not see a ton of Bruce being used as a deep ball threat but, first, it’s not necessary for him to be an asset to his team, and secondly, downfield passes are far less common at the high school level.

Nevertheless, it will be interesting to see what capacity Huggins is used in as his role increases for Louisville football.

Huggins is a fantastic get for the coaching staff, and he will be a player to celebrate when he makes things official on signing day.