Louisville football remains one of the most underrated programs in the nation, flying under the radar for several reasons. Up until this offseason, Jeff Brohm remained one of the most underrated coaches in college football, but he finally began to earn recognition after Louisville upset No. 2 Miami on the road. After that point, Brohm immediatley became a top candidate for many Power Four programs during the coaching carousel, but Brohm elected to stay home and continue to build this program.
Outside of Brohm, many players are severely underrated, and for some reason, one player who continues to fly under the radar and get disrespected is the Cardinals' star and 2025 Preseason All-American, Isaac Brown. On3 Sports recently posted its top 100 players for the 2026 season, and by no surprise, the Cardinals' star is disrespected once again.
Louisville's Isaac Brown disrespected once again in Top 100
Entering the 2025 season, Brown got completely disrespected by On3 Sports and ESPN rankings, where he came in ranked No. 44 overall by On3 Sports and No. 45 overall and No. 5 among running backs by ESPN. Brown had one of the best seasons among running backs in 2024, where he ran for 1,173 yards on 7.1 yards per carry, but ESPN or On3 Sports didn’t give him the praise he deserved.
Well, Brown continues to fly under the radar for no reason whatsoever, as the Cardinals star is ranked No. 24 overall and No. 4 among running backs in On3 Sports' way-too-early top 100 college football players for the 2026 season.
"Louisville’s Isaac Brown quite possibly is the best skill player you haven’t heard of. He runs hard and maximizes his opportunities. As an underclassman he’s commanded a mighty 44 percent Broken Tackle Rate and 5.1 YAC average. Over a fifth of his career carries have gained at least 10 yards. And this past season despite battling some injuries, his 8.2 yards/touch was the highest among qualifying Power 4 running backs."Clark Brooks
Brown has collected a total of 2,057 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns while averaging 7.7 yards per carry on just 266 rushes. He falls behind Ole Miss’s Kewan Lacy, Missouri’s Ahmad Hardy, and Florida’s Jadan Baugh, among other running backs.
The Cardinals' star running back logged just 101 carries for 884 yards and seven touchdowns in 2025 as he was limited by an injury and missed four games. Brown averaged the most yards per carry of the four running backs, and has the second most total rushing yards of the four, as he only trails Hardy.
When Brown entered the portal, he was ranked No. 1 at running back, and Louisville fans are already chiming in, saying the Cardinals' disrespect is the only reason he is ranked so low.
If he went to Texas somehow he’d magically be the top rb. No way there is any reason 3 SEC RBs are ranked higher man
— Tanner Roeder (@TannerRoed53590) January 22, 2026
With Brown returning, Louisville fans are expecting a career year from their star running back, and hopefully even more carries than the 165 he earned his freshman season. The Cardinals are consistently among the most underrated programs in the nation, and seeing Brown ranked No. 4 among running backs and disrespected is just fitting and almost expected at this point for Cards fans.