Louisville football spring ball has officially arrived and Cardinals nation is buzzing.
Louisville football is projected to be one of the heavy hitters in the ACC this year, and fans are thinking maybe this is the year they can compete for that prize jewel of an ACC crown. Cardinals do have some weaknesses on the defensive side of the ball, but hopefully, some underclassmen are able to step up and fill in those big shoes of players like Ashton Gillotte and Quincy Riley, who will be in the NFL now.
The Cardinals offense, on the other side, could pick up right where it left off, as Louisville's offense is going to be one of the best in the nation, not just ACC, but the nation. The Cardinals added one of the best quarterbacks in the transfer portal Miller Moss, and when you add his ability to throw downfield with his weapons, this Jeff Brohm Cardinals squad is poised for a breakout year.
So, these five players who stayed loyal are the most likely to experience an increase in opportunity or productivity this season and are poised to breakout this season for an incredible season.
Last season, Caullin Lacy was limited due to an injury, but he still was able to bring 18 catches for 196 yards and a touchdown. Lacy is set to be Miller Moss's No. 1 target this upcoming season as the Cardinals' speedy wide receiver has the ability to take over games.
Lacy transferred in from South Alabama, and in 2023, he had 91 catches for 1,316 yards and seven touchdowns. His 1,316 receiving yards ranked seventh in the country, and his 91 receptions ranked eighth.
Lacy's role and production are expected to skyrocket, as Ja'Corey Brooks was the Cardinals' main wide receiver in the 2024 season but entered his name into the NFL Draft. Brooks caught 61 catches for 1,013 yards and nine touchdowns.
With the absence of Brooks, Lacy is expected to have one of his best seasons and take that next jump for Cardinals wide receivers.
Stanquan Clark is expected to be one of the leaders in the locker room, as Clark is a junior but has stepped up tremendously in his freshman and sophomore seasons. Clark is 6-foot-3, 230-pounds, and is coming off his best season in college football.
Clark ended the year with 73 total tackles, which was the second most on the team; 43 solo tackles, which was the most on the team, two pass deflections, two interceptions, two forced fumbles and credited for half-a- sack.
In his freshman season, he had 15 tackles, two tackles for loss, and one forced fumble. One of Clark's best performances last season came against the National Champions runner-up Notre Dame. Jeff Brohm's middle linebacker finished with a team-high eight tackles against the Irish, added a tackle for a loss, and also forced a fumble. According to PFF, he scored a 92.6, including a 96.4 in run defense.
With the Cardinals glaring hole being in the passing defense, it is expected for Cardinals star linebacker to take next step in that area, while being elite on run defense.
D'Angelo Hutchinson is the Cardinals' star defensive back coming back, as he is expected to be the Louisville football's best corner returning. The Cardinals lost four of their top five backs on the defensive side of the ball, making Hutchinson the only DB with significant experience on this line.
Hutchinson ended his junior campaign with 52 total tackles, which rounded out the top five for most tackles on the team last year; 29 of them were solos, three were pass deflections, and two were tackles for a loss.
His breakout game came against Clemson last season where the 6-foot-3, 195-pound DB, secured nine total tackles, including five solo tackles in the Jeff Brohm and Cardinals first win historic win over Clemson.
Hutchinson experience will be poised for a breakout year under Jeff Brohm and with litter experience in the CB room, it is expected for D'Angelo Hutchinson to take that next step.
The biggest return to Louisville football's defense is 2024 leading tackler TJ Quinn. The 6-foot-1, 230-pound linebacker has displayed his limitless potential in multiple seasons, as he led Louisville football in tackles for now consecutive seasons.
Quinn took a huge jump from 2022 season to the 2023 season. In 2023 Quinn led the Cardinals with 91 total tackles, 33 of them were solos which ranked second on the team, two pass deflections, one interception, one fumble recovery, and credited for half-a-sack. He earned earned All-ACC Honorable Mention, and recorded four games with 10 tackles or more.
Last season Quinn continued to dominate, as he led the team with 82 tackles, 35 of them were solo tackles, and credited for one-and-a-half sacks. The Cardinals team leader started in all 13 games and is expected to take that next jump next season and be one of the best returning linebackers in the nation.
This shouldn't be a surprise. Louisville football's best returning player is, without a doubt, their Second-Team All-ACC, ACC Offensive Rookie of the Year, and the ACC Rookie of the year,
The Freshman All-American by PFF and 247Sports played in every game last season and just etched his name in Cardinals history books in nearly every running stat. Brown would go on to break two-time NFL MVP winner Lamar Jackson's true freshman rushing yards record at Louisville and also tied Jackson's true freshman record of rushing for 100 yards or more in five games last season
The 5-foot-9, 190-pound running back out of Homestead, Fla. ran for an astounding 1,173 yards, 11 touchdowns on 7.1 yards per carry. He led the ACC in yards per carry, was No. 24 in the nation in rushing yards, and third in the ACC.
Brown is expected to continue his dominance with the three-headed monster of Miller Moss and Caullin Lacy. With Brown behind Moss and Lacy on the outside, this Louisville football offense has all the tools to be absolutely lethal.