Louisville football is on an absolute heater right now as the Cardinals landed two 4-stars and an elite 3-star in just four days. The Cardinals are on the rise, and it appears no one can slow them down.
Louisville is landing all of its top targets, especially since they ripped Vince Marrow from Kentucky. Since Louisville stole Marrow from Kentucky, it is clear the Cardinals are soaring up and poised to stay hot, and the Wildcats are only trending down and are getting absolutely lost.
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With Louisville heating up, Mark Stoops and Kentucky are fading fast
Jeff Brohm and Louisville have brought in 21 total commitments in the 2026 cycle, and eight of them have committed since June. In just the last four days alone, Louisville has added 4-star Jarvis Strickland, who they flipped from Kentucky, 4-star Jayden McGregory, and 3-star Julius Miles.
While Louisville is landing its top targets, it is clear Kentucky is left stranded and lost. The Wildcats' 15 commitments are currently ranked No. 45 in the nation, one spot ahead of Brohm's old school, the Purdue Boilermakers. Kentucky has just three 4-star commits, and the biggest concern for Wildcats fans is that Louisville stole their top commit, Strickland, after stealing Marrow.
On3 Sports views Kentucky's class even worse. The Wildcats are ranked No. 49 in the nation, and On3 Sports gives them only 10 3-star commits, rather than 247Sports' 12.
The addition of Marrow is in full effect right now, and it is showing. Louisville has dominated the state of Kentucky, landing four of the top five recruits and six of the top 10 recruits from the state. As for the Wildcats? They have yet to land a Kentucky native recruit.
Louisville is landing the top in-state targets, and the Wildcats are left targeting recruits from other states, causing them to have their worst recruiting year since 2012. The Cardinals have double the number of 4-star recruits and have three more 3-star recruits, and have 21 total commits, which ranks them No. 28 in the nation.
The Wildcats are coming off an abysmally poor 4-8 season, with a 1-7 conference record. Louisville dominated the Wildcats last year, 41-14, and it is clear that was the first sign of these two programs trending in opposite directions.
Kentucky fans are not happy with Mark Stopps, especially since the program is now losing key staff members and commitments to the Cardinals. Kentucky has an 18-20 record in the last three seasons, while Louisville has a 27-13 record and made its first ACC Championship game appearance.
The Wildcats were able to rely on Marrow and recruit at an elite level, but now that Louisville has stolen Marrow, it is clear that the Cardinals are poised to fly past the Wildcats and leave them in the dust.
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For all the latest on Louisville football's offseason and recruiting, stay tuned.