Louisville football: Jeff Brohm loses some LB depth with KJ Cloyd entering the transfer portal

KJ Cloyd, a native of Columbia, Mississippi, did not receive any scholarship offers coming out of high school. A very similar path to Yaya Diaby, Cloyd elected to go the junior college route and decided to attend Jones College, a community college in Ellisville, Mississippi.

Only about an hour from his hometown, KJ Cloyd attended Jones College for one season before arriving at the University of Louisville. In his lone junior college season, the 6-foot-2 outside linebacker recorded 16 solo tackles and 36 assisted tackles for 46 total tackles. He also added two sacks, three and a half tackles for loss, and one forced fumble.

Certainly, an impressive stat line for a 10-game appearance, and that would help propel him to the Division I level. Scott Satterfield’s administration actively scouted the junior college ranks and KJ Cloyd was one of their many JUCO recruits.

After arriving in Louisville, Cloyd appeared in a total of 36 games over the course of three years. In those contests, he recorded 23 solo tackles and 17 assisted tackles for a total of 40 tackles. He also added two pass deflections and a fumble recovery.

Around the time Scott Satterfield filled the Head Football Coach vacancy at the University of Cincinnati, several Louisville players were expected to enter the transfer portal. And KJ Cloyd was one of them. Cloyd entered the transfer portal before the announcement of Scott Satterfield’s departure was made public.

Entering the transfer portal is much more common nowadays, especially in the case of graduate transfers, which is what he is. However, he decided to withdraw his name from the portal after nearly two months.

Head Coach Jeff Brohm and staff made him feel comfortable enough to remain a Cardinal and return as a veteran piece for Ron English’s new-look defense. So, he continued to dress in red and white until June 1st when he decided to re-enter the transfer portal.

He most likely decided to leave due to all of the new faces Jeff Brohm has brought in, but having established depth at a key position like linebacker is always a nice touch to any defense. Since Jeff Brohm arrived, he has brought in freshman Stanquan Clark and Oregon transfer Keith Brown to play the linebacker position. Add in returners like Jack Reiger, Jaylin Alderman, and TJ Quinn, and KJ Cloyd could have seen his playing time limited.

However, with the 4-2-5 defense that Ron English employs, he could have had a great opportunity to make an impact on the defensive side of the ball. But, he decided to do what’s best for him and Card Nation wishes him nothing but the best.