No. 5 – Ja’Darien Boykin
One player that Louisville fans have been high on for some time is true freshman Ja’Darien Boykin.
A part of the 2019 recruiting class, Boykin is still the highest-rated player that the coaching staff has inked since their arrival. Unfortunately, Boykin had some work to do and did not qualify last season, leaving a big-time hole on the Louisville defensive line.
Last week, however, Mark Ivey and Jared Goldwire met with the media and had nothing but good things to say about Boykin.
“When he is shining, it is bright,” Ivey said. “That guy has some explosion that is going to be hard for anybody to game plan against.”
At 6’0,” 255-pounds, Boykin is an absolute specimen at defensive end, and specializes as a pass-rusher who loves to create chaos in the opposing backfield.
“That boy’s get-off on pass rush is something ridiculous,” Goldwire said. “He is going to be a problem.”
That should be music to Louisville football fan’s ears. If there is one place where you can pinpoint a problem for the Cardinals over the last two seasons on defense, you could probably look at the lack of pass-rush.
Since stud defensive end Jon Greenard went out to injury in game one against Alabama two seasons ago, the Cardinals have struggled to apply the heat, and it has had a negative impact on the defense as a whole.
Boykin can be one of the guys to turn things around for the Cards in 2020.