Louisville Cardinals 2024 Preview (Full Depth Chart and Schedule Breakdowns) | 2024 College Football

Intro/2023 Season Review what is up everybody welcome back here to De YouTube channel we're back with another top 25 series today we are going Louisville Cardinals going over their 2024 preview all of their losses all of their transfers that they brought in which is a whole entire list going over offense defense impact players what we think their schedule is going to look like and just how good they are going to be this season but before we get into that let's talk about last year Jeff Braum came out firing for his all his Alma monitor right 10 and four they finished 19th in the AP Pole definitely jumped up faster than anybody thought they were going to do out there at Louisville seven and2 Conference record they played for a conference Championship in a game that they probably should have won they probably should have beat Florida State they it was a down Florida State team um when you're looking at just they only scored six points though in an offense that Jeff Bram definitely shouldn't have had that obviously they had their all their defense they were really good there just from a quarterback standpoint Florida state did not have Jordan Travis but you know you can't hold that against them played very very well had that loss against pit then you know Kentucky Florida State and then hey they lost obviously you know when you're looking at the USC holiday bull they lost in that one too but still a good year all opposed to what they were coming in they had Jack plumber he came over from Cal had 3,200 yards 21 touchdowns 12 interceptions they had a dynamic duo jard Gerard Jordan and Isaac jondo from the running back room there and then Jamari thrash he also played pretty well there so kind of hyped up on that offensive side for Jeff Braum brought him back right brought him back to life now what we're gonna do on diving into 2024 Offense this year's offense what it looks like because there's a big changes there's a lot of changes out there and really it was an interesting year last year for Louisville from an offensive perspective because their defense was better like their defense actually played better which for a Jeff Bram team is kind of interesting you know they averaged 28.8 points per game last year yards per game they at 395 so put him like 50th in the country so again not a top 50 Squad there um points per play you know 0 418 basically 46 in the country there third down conversion they weren't great 36% so 79th um from a rushing standpoint 50th from a passing stand Point passing yards per game they're are 38 so like middle of the pack really their defense kind of held in there so to me what that screams is second year in Bram system but even with transfer guys they have that identity now we could be looking at a better offense this year with the pieces really probably going to come down that quarterback play though it will um but the the big changes came I mean the big changes came everywhere this team is completely different they flipped the entire roster on both sides of the ball um but the two starting offensive tackles are gone I don't know if that's a good or bad thing I think when you look at uh you know their inefficiencies as as run blocking units um I think you can argue that it's a good thing I don't think that they were very you know good in pass protection as an offensive unit last year either um they've got a ton of guys that are kind of fighting for these starting spots when Rome Mills is currently the favorite to start at left tackle Jonathan Mendoza right tackle but rashed Miller's involved as well got a new center in Pete um he's coming over from Northern Illinois he had some some good film last year so I think that that's an upgrade um ronado Brown's in there as well but this offensive line is going to need to figure it out quickly um because Tyler shu is is a certain type of quarterback I think that uh when you compare Tyler shuck to highlevel Tyler shu is better than highle Jack plumber but I think Jack plumber is also safer with the ball and a little bit smarter with the football so I'm curious to see if they kind of you know move Tyler shuck into this more conservative role where he's just Distributing because this offensive Firepower this year uh while they did lose their running backs and I think that that is important to note here um they kind of filled the running back room with transfers but also this wide receiver wide receiving core is significantly better than what they had last year Colin Lacy is one of my guys uh this kid is absolutely fantastic I think he's the starting slot receiver but he can win from inside and outside very very fast um and dynamic with the ball in his hands but aggressive hands I think he's going to be that go-to for Tyler shook but we're big jakory Brooks fans as well so I'm curious to see if he gets involved um it's unfortunate what has happened in his career I I think that there's a lot of talent in that room and I think that this offense can be even better than it was last year like you alluded to yeah no it can be I mean again there is something to say about implementing your system being there for two years even guys around the program that you know maybe aren't starters that can say hey this is how we do things here hey we went to an ACC Championship game here like the culture like he built the culture there and now you got guys that you're talking about it's just Tyler shuck is a guy we've been talking about way too long I keep making that joke but like seven years seven years he came over from Texas Tech right and there's a reason why he's moved around a lot the biggest thing for me the interesting part for him him bringing them in they went after him early in the transfer Port they targeted him and there's a lot of guys out there still cam Ward who went to Miami a lot of these guys will Howard maybe they weren't able to get them but a lot of these guys were out there with the possibility of kind of grabbing them so maybe they maybe brono I mean he's a quarterback Whisperer right what he was able to do with plumber last year and those type of things like he does a good job with quarterback position and maybe see something in Tyler Shu that some others don't but I think that is the biggest kind of like whoa okay you went out there and got him from a notable Notable Losses losses standpoint yeah you hit it on the head with the running backs Isaac Dondo you know when you're looking at him 8 yards 11 touchdowns tested through the roof as well for the NFL um combine there jar Jordan is a guy I like as a sleeper out there in the Texans you know he got picked up by them 1100 yards 13 touchdowns really that thunder lightning kind of Guru that you know group last year and really gave him that duo that they need to kind of extend there because Jack flber was fine did have 12 interceptions but they leaned on that running back room Kevin Coleman transferred over the Mississippi State and again he didn't really do what many thought he was going to do uh coming out there from Dion's old team but he was okay and again there Jamari thrass as well is kind of gone there but really it's the running back room I I think Jack plumber Tyler shuck those guys kind of w wipe each other out there really the running backs and kind of getting that production is going to be the key for Louisville going forward yeah Jamari thr should also be on this graphic I think that he was a good you know safety blanket for this team last year but like I said I think that this wide receiver room is vastly upgraded um and and so I think that the running back room is is important Penny Boon um is is is coming in he ran for 15 touchdowns last year over 1300 yards for Toledo about in college four years he has that experience uh don Chen is a kid that I think can kind of I think it's going to be similar I think they went and they got their d and now it's just they're going to keep getting the transfer Duos in and hope that that sticks yeah no 100% now looking at recruits didn't do 2024 Offensive Recruits too bad on the recruiting trial based on kind kind of the teams that we've done so far top 40 class 38th overall transfer rank was 13th we'll get into those transfers here in a minute but as far as recruits go like you know from the from a offensive perspective a lot of three star kids which is really Braum's going to do that he's going to bring in what he has I mean his general manager is Greg Braum kind of working together there uh Dylan mes tight end 65 230 fine they have a really deep tight end room Louisville got some tight ends on this team like they went out in the portal too and grabbed tight ends that's probably one of the deepest positions Duke Watson is a guy some like 6 foot 180 so kind of on the smaller side in terms of weight um but could be that scatback kind of guy Isaac Brown as well 5980 they have a type there Duce Adams at quarterback up there from Austin Texas sha Boykins again three star kid 61190 nothing too like stands out I guess the big one Rance mcdermit it's a big boy 67300 out there Indiana so like again he bra's going to develop guys that's really what they go after and then they just Target the transfer portal really so they're obviously looking for those Diamonds in the Rough the guys that can go and if they can't find them they go out and use the nil and go get in the transport them yeah uh Duke Watson had over 5,500 yards on the ground over his four-year career in high school uh and he had 71 touchdowns and this is playing in Georgia so uh while he is a a smaller guy I mean he's tall but like he's a skinnier guy I'm curious to see if that translates pretty quickly we've seen um guys like that who are just Dynamic producers in high school uh you know adjust to the the college game pretty quickly yeah uh that could throw a wrench in that that running back Duo plan uh or at least give them another option uh in that back field I'm I'm curious to see if he's one of those guys that works on the field he had 1865 yards as a senior last year and 30 touchdowns so um productive we'll see if if it translates but that's the the most exciting uh player on this list for me yeah no pretty exciting there all right Key Offensive Transfers let's go to the trans because there's a ton of them here um and we looking at we couldn't put them all on here like we could not put Legend AJ veter out there Adam vinary son Tyler shuck quarterback Jonathan Mendoza okay so when you're looking at kind of how they attacked that offensive tackle like you talked about um coming from Yale right 6938 69308 Jonathan Mendoza um jakori Brooks is the guy I kind of want to talk about jalo Skinner as well um both guys you know Miami tight end coming over um was kind of really really a fourstar k one of the best tied ends coming out just didn't find that development in Miami for whatever it's worth and I do think that he has that athleticism that you really like kind of brings an extra Dynamic to this offense if he could see the field but jaku Brooks to me man two years ago he's very good I mean many were talking about him being the second round draft pick in the NFL like they looked at him as that production in Alabama and it's just not there right he wasn't there last year whatever it was I heard off the field stuff maybe sabin's dogh house a little bit um wasn't there but as that Z in this offense I like it I think him and Colin Lacy that one-two punch and then they have Chris Bell there as well but that's a very solid receiving room that compliments each other right Lacy that quick slot guy creat separation can be the big play guy jakori Brooks is more of that hey kind of be that possession guy 50-50 guy can make big plays though down the down the field and Chris Bell to me is that utility guy kind of like Jordan wington for you college football fans of Texas kind of the ex guy that kind of do anything out there um I think those guys are solid when you're looking at this transfer portal room um but jakori to me is The X Factor because what he did two years at Alabama can he replicate that out there at Louisville yeah this I mean we don't have enough time to talk about all of these guys but um Skinner to me was one of those guys he was just too skinny when he came in funny enough um but like I I just feel like the the development was hinging or his his upside was always hinging on him putting on some weight and and becoming a better blocker I think he is a dynamic threat with ball in his hands still at least that's what he's shown Us in limited work but I think everything revolves around the running backs and uh this these two wide receivers that transferred in I think um all of that should make it pretty difficult for Tyler shuk to fail um because this offense is gonna look pretty good but we've seen Tyler Shu fail um in the past so I also think you know Tyler shu's experience is something that they're going to lean on it's kind of what they did with Jack plumber who transferred uh you know two times same as Tyler Shu it's a very similar situation with more Talent though I think when you're just looking at Raw Talent I think shuck has more of it so I think the upside for this offense is crazy high yeah and when we go into Impact Players - Offense impact players I'm glad you brought that up Tyler Shu competed with Bo Knicks remember a couple years ago like they were pretty close and they were talking about kind of at orgon and look at what Bo Knicks is now first round draft pick now I'm not out here saying Tyler star's G be a first round draft pick but the talent was there like the battle was there the talent was there too um I'll let you go ahead and talk about Colin Lacy here I know that's you you talked about him being your guy but I do think you know when you're looking at from an NFL upside you see do you see maybe day one or day two kind of potential there yeah did two um he's i'll spoil this for my wide receiver video that isn't even close to being completed and this is probably going to be out before that but uh he's like up at my wide receiver six right now okay uh for this class so he's looking like a day two player to me and and maybe that's the level of competition that he faced but I don't think it is I I think we're going to see a very dynamic DC player I think this is going to be the kid that everyone says who is this kid I've never heard of him um but I I know Louisville fans will already know who he is but be excited to watch him because yeah I think this I think he brings a dynamic that they didn't have last year they just didn't have this like gamebreaking speed uh you know threat with the ball in your hands on every given snap like that's what this kid offers I think he's a fantastic athlete very very excited to watch him in this offense he makes things happen that you know normal receivers can't and especially like over the middle and Crossing routes little things like that a 5 yard Crossing route could actually be a 50 yard touchdown like those are the things that can Elevate this offense there now going over to defense so when 2024 Defensive Breakdown looking at the numbers last year like I kind of alluded to at the beginning of this video pretty good last year opponent's Point points per game they only gave up 22 points per game last year as a top 40 team um opponent yards per game they were only 328 number 22 and really where that came from was the rushing defense the rush defense was really good opponent rushing yards per game only 100 they were 11 in the in the nation last year they were top 12 um defense there again opposing rushing yards per Rush only 3.4 they were a top 20 unit there their pass defense was okay like you know when you're looking at you know passing yards per game 65th that that definitely was their area of like hey they bended a little bit they broke a little bit there but from a rushing standpoint really good job there they were top 40 in the NCA last year for sack percentage at 7% so like okay right that's really what you're asking for a first year coach coming in um overall their their defense was okay their rushing defense was extraordinary their pass defense needs to get some work in there yeah I think this defense revolves around Ashton gelotti I I think that that's a potential day one Edge rusher right there um but definitely a day two Guy this is a kid that the everything revolves around him I think he's so so strong as a run Defender um and and he's gotten so much better as a pass rusher already uh so to me if he can continuously you know Pockets I think that's going to help this this cornerback Group which Quincy Riley in coverage last year was absolutely fantastic outside of that they didn't have a whole lot behind them I think they're hoping that this group with a lot of transfers a lot of different bodies in there I think they're hoping Cory Thornton can be that that better cornerback too um than than what they had last year but um to me this is a a defense that when you look at it on paper it it looks a little bit different from last year but I think on paper this can be a better defense than what we saw last year um but a lot does ride on on gelotti you know taking another leap forward and and being more of a game wrecker instead of just a really really talented player everybody talks about that Ashton gelotti will live and die by him I keep hear I seen all these think pieces about him like out there in Louisville the writers are all talking about him there the reason why when Notable Losses you're looking at notable losses I mean nothing nothing huge I mean Jarvis brownley you know they were talking about his leadership and what he was able to kind of put out there on the field um they liked him overall you know pass deflections he had six last year from a tackles perspective 30 but more of a leadership thing there Cameron Kelly 30 you know he had 70 total tackles last year so he definitely was kind of flying around the ball um you know Jaylen Alder Alderman excuse me 62 again total tackles there one and a half sacks though and then Jeff Clark I think they talked about him being inside um they liked him there but only 14 tackles but he was more of that stuffer but again not a ton of sacks you know gelotti was the only one with 11 when you're looking at just the sacks last year and then Mason rer had five but again that sack percentage you'd like to see them good after quarterback a little bit more yeah and I know liouville fans are probably already in the comments uh after hearing me say you know they didn't have a great CB2 I think brownley was good and then I think that there's defin I mean he's in the NFL now so that's that's a good sign but I also think that there was a lot that teams could expose him on um and and so I think when you look at that you're hoping for a little bit bit more production I think some of that production in that secondary can come from other Edge rushers other defensive tackles stepping up and kind of generating you know better situations for that secondary we're going to talk about the transfers here shortly but um they've got a lot of new bodies in here like we talked about this team just went crazy in the transfer portal um and we'll talk about some of those guys and how they can maybe help it but really brownley and and Kelly are the only two here that I think are are really really notable and and impact players that they're going to miss yeah and it's more about leadership to me I think there was some leadership but they got him in there last year that's why they went 10 four and they were able to do it they did and now it's like hey hope these other guys young guys step up and see that just follow their lead as far as 2024 Defensive Recruits like recruiting again we're not going to spend a ton of time on this because they didn't really go after a ton of guys in the recruiting area just because they went at the transfer portal that's kind of where they went um some guys that kind of stand out you know Maurice Davis The Edge could be an interesting kind of piece there um 63210 out of Georgia again three star kid 53 overall there the guy that I kind of looked up Xavier Porter again because that defensive line maybe needs a little help there out of Tampa Florida Tampa Florida bring some Big Boys 62 270 out there 265 um and when you're looking at him you know when you when you're talking about him overall like he he he's okay like in high school he did that pretty well um he was a number 70 ranked defensive lineman out there 123 tackles in his career and 13 and a half sacks in his entire career there um and as a senior he had 76 tackles and seven and a half sacks so look for Xavier Porter possibly to kind of fill in maybe not this year but kind of be that guy in that defensive line that can kind of Step Up for them yeah um my favorite of this class is Jaden Spearman um I think when you're looking at maybe some safety depth uh maybe a kid that can can get on the field right away I think this kid has all the athleticism in the world to do that um we'll see if it happens like we said this team went crazy on the transfer portal uh the the recruiting Trail was a little lighter but let's Key Defensive Transfers talk about the transfers yeah let's get into it all right so uh trell Logan Dan Foster Jr all of these guys here what what what do you take away from this transfer class um who are some guys that we need to know so Cory thoron I mentioned already I think that um when you look at how he complements the rest of this secondary I think that that's a perfect CB2 for you miles Jernigan and TRL Logan are the two Ed rushers I think that should stand out um and be impact types of players Jernigan is is probably going to start for them right away I think when you increase the odds that there's an edge to that can get some level of pressure some level of sack production here um then gelotti is going to be freed up and not face as many double teams so that seems to be like what they focused on um here bringing in Three Edge rushers and two defensive tackles we need to find a way to free him up a little bit I think that this was a good good route to do it um Renee kga I'm excited to see him and Thor Griffith and and what they can contribute but to me it's the The Edge rushers um that are going to kind of help ease that transition so we'll see who steps up from this group I think it's going to be a big battle um as we get into the fall and whatnot and we'll see how many of these guys are still playing come November December but um to me this is this is what a team who's going for it will do um and I think that they are very much so going for a title this year you know me I like weird stories but I also like kind of like those fun players Thor Griffith to me big boy out of Harvard like you know 62 320 big boy and he was probably again I say this with a with a listen to me an open mind he was one of the best defensive tackles in the ivy league I get it's the ivy league but first team honors the senior and a junior right there I mean and people went after him he was the number five best available defensive line transfer on on three um so they definitely went after them last year um you know he did have 11 tackles for lost three and a half sacks and he's just that plug guy he's just going to plug that defensive line and kind of be there so I'm interest to see if he can get in that rotation for sure um and I love his name Thor Griffith just sounds like that guy in terms of like what you're looking at but like we talked about impact players Ash L Quincy Riley Impact Players - Defense miles Jernigan these guys this team's gonna live and die by these guys especially Ashton I think he's GNA have to have that that big year for this team to really step up and and get back to maybe that ACC Championship game yeah for what it's worth there were like seven more transfers that we didn't even mention and one of those players could be one of these impact players I think just they've got as many bodies as they possibly can they're throwing it at the wall and saying this defense wasn't good enough for us last year we know that we can create a good enough offense to compete for a title but the defense didn't do it for us so uh I I mean even thinking back to that Kentucky game last year I think uh their offense was very clearly good enough to win that game and they gave up I think 37 points 38 points in that game so um I think that they have done a really good job in making sure that that won't be the case as much this year but everything revolves around gelotti um like we've talked about over and over I think this kid is fantastic I struggled to keep him out of my 2025 mock um I think he's a top 50 pick and when you have that type of player on defense you have a high ceiling I think that this this defense has a high ceiling but the floor could be a little rough with all these new players trying to gel together we'll see how it it shakes out yeah to me you're going to see a lot of rotation early in the season you're going to see in those early games kind of how these guys are playing there and when you're looking at 2024 Schedule the schedule you know it's interesting you know Louisville has an eight and a half win total so when you're looking at that um that's where the over under is at Austin P Jacksonville State should be wins right Georgia te Tech is Scrappy uh they it's interesting out there they had that Scrappy offense out there with Haynes King and those guys Notre Dame tough game at Notre Dame SMU again interesting kind of offense out there with Preston Stone and those guys at Virginia and Virginia's been down but you know do they kind of pop back up really kind of is going to depend on Elliot and that offense out there and if he gets that thing going Miami Florida which is the favorite I guess part of big kind of favorite they're always the favorite out there with Clemson Boston College Stanford at Stanford end of the year going all the way across country damn the ACC is that travel schedule is gonna be tough versus pit and at Kentucky tough tough games here when you're looking at the schedule overall late late in there but they got to get some early wins there obviously the first two I think that Georgia Tech big game for them they can win that go three and0 in Notre Dam I think they're feeling pretty comfortable yeah but but I would say also Notre Dame SMU Miami Clemson I would call losses on paper and so we're sitting at eight already um and and so that's where it gets a little bit difficult now could I be wrong about that do I think that Miami could fall flat on their face again like they have in the past and I mean this this team which we've talked about is the 2023 team could probably worse on paper than this team um that team beat Miami so maybe I'm wrong there but I do think Miami is taking steps forward to where that's a very challenging game and it's SL slated right in the middle of your season you're going to know what you are by then um there's a chance that you come out of Notre Dame you lose to ASU and then you drop another one to Virginia and then it kind of just derails I don't think that happens but I am inclined to take the under if only because when I look at the schedule and see four probable losses on paper that already gets us there and and that scares me a bit but that doesn't take away from I think eight wins I think wins is a good outcome for this team I know it would be a step backward but uh to me this is uh this is an under under call here yeah no for me going over Outro - Overall Outlook final Outlook lock the Under Louisville fans can come after me but I'm locking I think that I think a is where they're at I think a is there I can't get behind the ti of the shuck I just can't do it you know I just cannot follow I think he's fine but I think plumber's better I think plumber is better I think you know why we're talking about he has that there um I think this defense can't be better though the transfers there but the one thing too that I want to bring up bringing in all those transfers isn't necessarily work going to work every single time either like there's some jelling there I know Braum has a great culture and louisans don't come after me I actually really like your coach I really like Braum there um but you know how well do they Jael I think that's a big thing there you know a lot of transfers coming in early in the season those first two games are huge right but if they lose that Georgia Tech game they're definitely going under and that's really where I'm at with this Rost with the schedule and where everything is there so I'm going to go under I think it's my lock I think was one of my big locks of the of the top 25 that I think eight wins is probably where I'm at I'm comfortable with them and again that doesn't leave a big margin of error maybe they do get a win that I wasn't expecting and maybe Clemson you know Clemson who Club Nick threw two interceptions here did whatever they needed to do um but I go under there pretty comfortably but even eight wins I think they overperformed last year I think that they're going to maybe kind of perform back to where they should be around that eight win mark this year and then moving forward I think braah will get him back into that conversation yeah that's a conversation though because I don't know if it's sustainable to just hit the portal every single year and so I'm curious to see how he kind of he didn't really build it um through recruiting which I I was a little bit shocked about because it seems like he's there for the Long Haul um so to me I'm curious I don't think I Louisville fans can get mad at me but I don't think Pierce Clarkson is the the answer at quarterback so I think they're going to be in search of another quarterback um when when the time comes so we'll see but overall I mean yeah we're I guess we're down on this team I I think uh when you look at the roster I think you can make an argument for a championship an ACC Championship but I think you can also make an argument for six wins uh six or seven wins so I'm hitting the under sorry Louisville fans this is as if makings of the second year slump a little bit after the first year overachieve year you have braam coming in there that rur ra guy kind of coming there um and then you're you're seeing that but who knows we got called out last year in Colorado uh BT you and we got some guys coming after us so we're not used to we're used to getting called out here um but let us know what you think in the comments put down there what you think uh you know do you think that Louisville can be that nine 10 win team do you think they're going to challenge there um or are you more letbe a little bit more realistic like hey maybe they're going to struggle maybe that schedule a little tough especially in the middle down the stretch of the year um all right let us know we appreciate you guys we'll check you guys on next top 25 breakdown n [Music] [Music]