Louisville football and 2021 recruit decide to part ways
When all of Louisville football‘s commitments were signing their national letters of intent back in mid-December, there was one name that was left out from the list of 21 new signees.
That player was Louisville legacy Jaraye Williams. Williams, a four star recruit out of Kennedy Catholic in Washington, was the lone commitment that did not sign with the Cardinals in December. He is the son of former Louisville and NBA basketball star Terrence Williams.
The eldest Williams was a first-team All Big East performer for the Cardinals as a senior during the 2008-09 season. It was thought that his son was next in line for major success at Louisville.
Jaraye was slated to be the third highest ranked commitment in the class according to the 247 Sports rankings. Listed as an outside linebacker, Williams would have had the opportunity to fill multiple roles with his versatility as a 6’3″ athlete that ranged anywhere from rush outside linebacker to a safety.
With his recruitment now open, it appears that the two sides of the commitment have decided to go their separate ways after national signing day for the fall of 2021 season passed.
This is a big loss for the Cardinals
Seizing the opportunity to pounce on legacy recruits is very important if you can make it work. With Williams being a four-star, this seemed like as great of a time as any to cash in on the opportunity. He had been solidly committed since late May of 2020 and seemed like a sure thing to be a Cardinal right up to the early signing period. Now the Cardinals miss out on an opportunity to secure a four-star recruit – a chance that does not come around more than a handful of times per year for this program.
Williams’ versatility made him a valuable piece to the class. He very well could have played either outside linebacker position at a very high level. The bloodlines of one of the most famous Cardinal basketball players of all time also helps a great deal.
The recruit himself had not gone into detail about what exactly happened with his recruitment. But something must have gone wrong on one or both sides of the equation to lead to this outcome. Not having Williams means missing out on a blue-chip recruit that could have been a valuable cornerstone towards the future of the Louisville defense.
The bright side is…
Louisville secured the signature of Georgia Southern transfer safety Kenderick Duncan. That may not have been possible if Williams were still in the fold. Bryan Brown had some glowing things to say about him in the early days of spring practice.
Bryan Brown on new safety transfer Kenderick Duncan “I expect him to come in and play like an All-ACC player. He looks the part. … He’s a smart cat that knows what we are doing.”
— Cameron Teague (@cj_teague) February 10, 2021
Despite Louisville losing a prized recruit, it sounds like there is already an experienced veteran presence filling the void.
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