Louisville football suffers another massive blow from the Transfer Portal as Hayes Fawcett just reported Louisville linebacker Antonio Watts entered the Transfer Portal. The Cardinals learned earlier today that safety Corey Gordon Jr. will also enter the portal, bringing the total number of Cardinals already in the portal to 21.
The Cardinals' defense has taken a hit from the portal, as Watts and Gordon are two key pieces of this unit and now join star edge rusher AJ Green in the portal. So, in a crucial offseason in which Jeff Brohm has many areas to fill, including his defensive coaching staff, he will now have to replace these three key players.
BREAKING: Louisville LB Antonio Watts is entering the @TransferPortal, his agent tells @On3Sports
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) January 2, 2026
Through 3 seasons he’s totaled 123 tackles, 6 PD, 3 sacks, 4 FF, and 3 INT
Repped by @david_benzaken and @IanGrutman https://t.co/RlUbB6Fk7q pic.twitter.com/axVCahaNDn
Related: 6 Louisville football players that the Cardinals cannot afford to lose this offseason
Louisville football loses two key defenders day one of Transfer Portal
Entering this offseason, Louisville fans circled multiple defensive players they couldn’t lose, and Watts was, without a doubt, one of them. The junior linebacker became a key part of this defense and was a starter in 2025 before getting injured.
This past season, Watts took a massive leap from his sophomore year, making multiple game-changing plays and showing he could be a key aspect of this defense. In his junior season, he earned his highest PFF grade of 80.7 after he earned 42 tackles, three interceptions, three pass breakups, three sacks, two forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery.
The Cards' defense is taking a huge blow with the loss of Watts, as fans were dreaming of pairing Watts with TJ Capers and Stanquan Clark next season. However, now that Watts is gone, the fans are hoping Brohm has the power to avoid a disastrous situation in which the team loses Clark and/or Capers as well.
The Cardinals' linebackers room will already lose a massive piece in TJ Quinn, who was the team leader in tackles the past three seasons. As for Gordon, he started in three games this past season and logged the sixth most tackles on the team with 53. He transferred in from Baylor after playing his first two seasons with the Bears.
The Transfer Portal opened this morning, Jan. 2, and will remain open until Jan. 16. This is the only portal window, as there is no longer a spring window.
Related: Who's coming and who's going: Louisville football 2026 Transfer Portal tracker
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