Louisville football: 2021 roster gets new numbers

Jersey numbers are fun. Nobody really knows why or what makes them that way. They just are. With a new season comes plenty of number changes and newcomers get the opportunity to choose which number they will dress out in for their first collegiate football season.

That time has now come for Louisville football.

The art of the jersey number

Anyone who says it does not matter to them is lying to you. It means way more than you think. Who has the freshest number is priority one in any offseason. Once you figure that out, you can add up the rest later.

The most coveted numbers in college tend to be any single digit with No. 1 being one of the cleanest choices anyone can make. Meanwhile, the No. 0 was just added as an option before the 2020 season. If you want to pull that off, you better show it well. That one can certainly be a little bit risky.

Unequivocally, any defensive lineman that wears a single digit number is an automatic star no matter if they play a single down over the course of a season or not. If the jersey hardly covers the gut, even more brownie points. This is proven by facts alone.

The official 2021 Louisville football roster has been released. So let’s get weird taking a look at jersey numerals.

Newcomer Numbers

** Scholarship newcomers only

No. 5 WR/QB Shai Wertz (Georgia Southern transfer)

No. 9 WR Ahmari Huggins-Bruce (Freshman)

No. 10 S Benjamin Perry (Freshman)

No. 20 CB Derrick Edwards (Freshman)

No. 23 RB Trevion Cooley (Freshman)

No. 26 CB Kani Walker (Freshman)

No. 27 S Kendrick Duncan (Georgia Southern transfer)

No. 33 S Bralyn Oliver (Freshman)

No. 34 S T.J. Quinn (Freshman)

No. 61 OL Bryan Hudson (Virginia Tech transfer)

No. 68 OL Michael Gonzalez (Freshman)

No. 80 WR Demetrius Cannon (Freshman)

No. 97 DL Ashton Gillotte (Freshman)

The newcomers did well here. The safety position feels like it needs as low of a number as possible in college to achieve the optimal level of coolness, but we will let it slide for Oliver and Quinn here. The rest are very solid.

The standouts include Huggins-Bruce with a single digit and Trevion Cooley with the No. 23 at running back. Overall, the numbers alone are good to put these newcomers in high standing.

Number changes from current players

No. 80 -> No. 1 WR Jordan Watkins

No. 47 -> No. 60 TE Desmond Daniels

Jordan Watkins’ switch to No. 1 is what legends are made of. The No. 1 at receiver puts you in the upper echelon and clearly Watkins understands that with his choice. The true sophomore is ready to look good putting up big numbers in 2021.

OK, jersey numbers aren’t really that important

It’s always a fun exercise to see the switches made by players on the team. But, obviously, numbers are not really all too important at the end of the day. When they first suit up on gameday, it can be difficult to remember who is who because of the turnstile of jersey numbers that takes place every year.

Consider this your resource for who is new to each of their numbers.

You will have to get to know some of their new looks sooner rather than later.