Louisville football: Four options for Cards at QB in 2021

TJ Lewis

DUAL, 6’3, 180-pounds

Recruiting status: Top 5

Most of the talk over the last several weeks and months has been focused on the recruitment of Shedeur Sanders, who was thought to be the number one player on the board. After his decision to commit to play at FAU, that leaves the number one spot at the position available on the Louisville side.

The guy at the top of the proverbial quarterback big board is TJ Lewis, who the staff extended an offer to back at the beginning of June along with a number of others. Over the coming weeks, Lewis would become the player that the staff prioritized along with Sanders, and it led to Satterfield and company making the final list of five schools.

Building strong relationships with players quickly is the specialty of the Louisville football staff and much like we’ve seen with others, quarterback’s coach Frank Ponce has been the key driver of doing just that. Lewis spoke with Jody Demling of Cardinal Authority, saying:

"“They were different. We did a lot of zoom meetings, they came at me different than other schools.” “…Coach Ponce, I really like him a whole lot. We talk just about every day. Before they even offered me, they were around.”"

The final five of Lewis may be “lackluster” compared to what Louisville fans would want to see, with the Cards joining Virginia Tech, Central Florida, Georgia Tech, and Coastal Carolina, but don’t let it distract you from seeing the potential of the three-star quarterback.

Ranked as the 28th best dual-threat quarterback and the 79th best player overall in the state of Georgia, Lewis is a guy who the Cards have targeted because of his fit in the Scott Satterfield offense. As we’ve talked about a ton, and as Keith Wynne of Card Chronicle has talked about on the BRL Podcast on numerous occasions, fit is one of the most important check-offs for the coaching staff when recruiting a player. As Lewis told Demling of Cardinal Authority,

"“My high school runs basically the same stuff. It really fits my athleticism. They let the QB use their legs a lot. Louisville is not one of those teams that loves a pocket QB. I am not a pocket QB.”"

Speed is the name of the game with Lewis who thrives when using his legs out in the open field. He’s a raw thrower but a guy who shows a ton of upside as a deep and intermediate passer, something Micale Cunningham is highlighting in the offense.

With time working with Ponce, Lewis can easily develop into not only a solid long-term quarterback but also a weapon that the staff can have at their disposal to add in more wrinkles into the already dynamic offense.

There’s no timeline yet on a commitment from Lewis, but now with Sanders and Justin Lamson off the board expect the staff to turn up the heat and push for a commitment sooner rather than later.