Louisville football: Four options for Cards at QB in 2021

Nick Vattiato

DUAL, 5’11, 169-pounds

One name that has been on the big board for Louisville football for some time that you may not have heard before is Nick Vattiato. The 5’11 dual-threat QB out of Florida visited the program for the first time last June, taking part in the program’s “Elite” camp and ultimately earning himself an offer.

Since then, Louisville football has prioritized several others at the position. There were a handful of offers that were extended shortly after the commitment of then top quarterback, Chayden Peery. Two of those guys, TJ Lewis and Jaylen Henderson, are still on the board while two others, Justin Lamson and Lucas Coley, have come off the board committing to Syracuse and Arkansas respectively. Now that moves Vattiato up and could make him an option should others commit elsewhere or if the program ultimately decides to take two players at the position.

Playing in one of the toughest states in the entire country, Vattiato was dynamic throwing for 2,116 yards and 21 touchdowns, completing 56 percent of his passes and was named to the Broward 5A-1A football First-team offense.

While not as explosive as the others on the list, Vattiato is a capable runner built in the mold of current quarterback Evan Conley and is more than capable of making plays with his legs. He thrives on being able to get out of the pocket and extend plays, throwing a fairly accurate ball on the run all while taking care of the football.

You can watch Nick Vattiato’s full junior highlights here.

His offer sheet is also a lot like Conley’s mostly being made up of non power five programs including Appalachian State, Holy Cross, Harvard, Ohio, Penn, and others but does feature a few power five programs including Kentucky and Wake Forest.

The recruitment of Vattiato, like many, as greatly been influenced by the ongoing pandemic and the lack of exposure camps and other events taking place has prevented his list of schools from growing. But once again, like Conley, Vattiato being undersized has also kept many coaches from feeling comfortable with extending offers.

It’s unlikely that Vattiato is a take at this point but if things go south with other options, the dynamic quarterback would be a great option and a player who would push Tee Webb and could develop into a long-term starter.