Louisville football gets surprise boost to hopefully patch alarming depth issue

Louisville football fans got some good news on Thursday afternoon as the Cardinals learned Blake Ruffin, who entered the Transfer Portal earlier in the offseason, will withdraw his name and will return. The Cardinals have had a phenomenal offseason so far, as Jeff Brohm and Vince Marrow have been able to bring back multiple players who entered the transfer portal, including defensive anchors in AJ Green and Antonio Watts.

While Ruffin didn’t see much time on the defensive side the last two seasons, he will bring much-needed depth to the Cardinals secondary. Ruffin transferred to Louisville in 2024 from Eastern Illinois after he was ranked No. 1,316 in the portal and No. 141 among safeties.

He announced on social media that he will return "home" for his third season with Louisville and will end his career as a Cardinal, as he has only one year of eligibility remaining.

There’s no place like home #L1C4
— Blake Ruffin (@Ruffin4k) January 15, 2026

Louisville gets much-needed help for its secondary

Louisville lost three of its top four safeties from a season ago, with Ruffin now returning. The Cardinals took a hit when Corey Gordon Jr. entered the portal, as their two starters in D'Angelo Hutchinson and JoJo Evans ran out of eligibility. Louisville did add Iowa 4-star transfer Koen Entringer and Murray State transfer Dylan Rowsey, but the Cards needed at least one or two more bodies in their safety room before this update.

Now, the Cards get a much-needed boost for their secondary. Entering today, the safety position was one of the Cardinals' biggest areas of need, and now that Ruffin is returning, the Cardinals can try to address the offensive and defensive lines.

This past season with Louisville, he logged eight tackles and a fumble recovery while playing a lot of time on special teams. Before Louisville, while at Eastern Illinois, he was a dominant defensive back, starting every game in 2023 and recording 63 tackles, 4 pass breakups, 4 interceptions, 4.0 tackles for a loss, 1 sack, and 1 forced fumble.

The Cardinals' secondary lost many key pieces from a year ago, and now they have three experienced options in Entringer, Rowsey, and Ruffin. Also, in the safety room are freshmen Jordan Vann and Micah Rice.

There are still some solid names out there if Louisville would like to add to its secondary, including LSU transfer and former 4-star recruit Javien Toviano or Tennessee transfer Kaleb Beasley, but for now, Louisville fans will enjoy Ruffin returning.

For all the latest recruiting news and updates for Louisville football, stay tuned.