Louisville safety M.J. Griffin and wide receiver Ja’Corey Brooks are now healthy after suffering injuries last year, Cardinals coach Jeff Brohm said Monday.
Griffin tore his ACL during fall camp last year and missed the 2023 season, while Brooks sustained a shoulder injury last season at Alabama. Brooks was limited during the spring but is now going at full speed.
“Obviously we’re protecting him as well, but he’s full speed,” Brohm said of Brooks. “He’s looking good. He needs to be a big part of our offense.”
Brohm, in providing updates on his team Monday, added that offensive lineman Renato Brown is “getting back to 100%” after last year’s season-ending injury at Pitt. He’s expected to be ready to go by fall camp.
The Cardinals are coming off a productive spring season where Texas Tech transfer quarterback Tyler Shough made his U of L debut. Brohm was pleased with the way the seventh-year player was able to showcase his arm. Although Shough can run the ball, the focus is on protecting him to prevent him from suffering a season-ending injury for a fourth straight year.
Brohm plans to take advantage of his depth on the offensive line, by rotating nine or 10 linemen, to do so.
“We can spend some time with him, and we have, and I feel good about where he’s at,” Brohm said of Shough. “And I think he can play at a high level. … We get the ball in our playmakers’ hands, and we don’t have to run him as much. We feel confident about his leadership skills, what he brings to the table, and we think he can have a big year.”
With the exception of one player, the program welcomed the rest of its transfer portal additions — highlighted by defensive lineman Thor Griffith (Harvard) and tight end Mark Redman (San Diego State) — and incoming freshmen last month.
While Brohm wasn’t willing to commit to the Cardinals having an official “No. 2,” he said Pierce Clarkson would “be the next guy in” after Shough with Harrison Bailey and Brady Allen being “right there.”
“We’ll always have competition there,” Brohm said of the quarterback position. “… We need to be able to utilize all those quarterbacks at any point.”
Clarkson came to Louisville as a four-star prospect last year. He only played against Murray State and had a seven-yard pass. The Cardinals played nine quarterbacks in the contest, including Allen and Bailey. Although the squad won’t play that many this year — there are only eight on the roster — Brohm assured that each would see the field at some point this season. Last year, Brock Domann and Evan Conley were the only QBs to come in as reserves and play in more than one game. Both have now graduated.
“Sometimes you kind of gage and see what are certain strengths of each player,” Brohm said. “If you need to develop a certain package for every game to have that ready to go, we’re not scared to do that. So, I wouldn’t be surprised if we have those packages ready this year for different quarterbacks. And then unfortunately, if someone goes down, like your starter, the next guy has to be ready to go in there and win a game for you.”
Similarly, Brohm had packages for Conley in 2023, many of which were run plays. He finished with 42 yards and two touchdowns on seven carries.
Louisville knows what it has with experienced defensive linemen like Ashton Gillotte, Dez Tell and Ramon Puryear. But adding even more experience became important for the Cardinals. Following the spring season, U of L added four defensive linemen from the transfer portal: Rene Konga, Richard Kinley and Tramel Logan, who’s not yet on campus.
U of L had previously added three linemen after the season ended in Thor Griffith, Jordan Guerad, who suffered an injury during the spring, and Tyler Baron. But Baron, now at Miami, was one of eight linemen who transferred out of the program in the five months following the 2023 season.
“I think we have quite a bit of depth on the defensive line, and we can play quite a few guys,” Brohm said. “You want to see difference-makers emerge that can take over the game. But at the same time, we’re going to have competition.”
The line will be expected to play a vital role in the success of the team’s defense.
“We’re going to be able to play a lot of guys on defense,” Brohm said. “We want to be as aggressive as we can, but yet not give up big plays, keep the score low and create turnovers. I like our pieces. Without question, I expect our defense to play very well this year.”
Reach Louisville football, women’s basketball and baseball beat writer Alexis Cubit at acubit@gannett.com and follow her on X at @Alexis_Cubit.
