LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The 2024 regular season for the Louisville football program is in the rear view mirror, and now it's time to start to access the year that was.
While the Cardinals didn't make a return trip to Charlotte, they still went 9-3 in year two under Brohm, which included a 35-34 win in the Sun Bowl over Washington to end the year on a three-game winning streak. Louisville's 19 wins so far under Brohm are the most in a two-year stretch since winning 21 in 2013-14
It might not have been a perfect season anymore, but it's was a highly successful one. There were some incredible highs, a handful of lows, and a little bit in between.
With the season now concluded, we here at Louisville Cardinals On SI decided to issue a report card to assess the various position groups for the Cardinals. Take a look below:
2024 Grade: B+
The single-biggest storyline entering the 2024 season for Louisville revolved around Tyler Shough's health. Well, he was able to play a full season for the first time in three years, and it paid massive dividends. He completing 62.7 percent of his throws for 3,195 yards and 23 touchdowns to six interceptions, earning an All-ACC honorable mention. His arm strength and veteran savviness undoubtedly helped Louisville win games. However, I can't give him an A grade simply because of his unwillingness to use his mobility as a weapon, which did cost the Cards a couple times. I know it's because he was trying to not get hurt again, but still.
2024 Grade: A
No position group on the roster has a brighter future than running back. Isaac Brown took the ACC by storm, rushing for 1,173 yards to break the Louisville true freshman rushing record, as well as 11 touchdown. Then fellow true freshman Duke Watson added 597 yards and seven touchdowns, with his 8.9 yards per carry leading all of FBS. Even Keyjuan Brown as a third option had 243 yards and three scores. The only thing holding the Cards back from an A+ is some of the struggles running the ball when starting power conference play, but that's it.
2024 Grade: C+
Louisville had one of the best wide receiver tandems in the ACC this past season in Ja'Corey Brooks and Chris Bell. Brooks took home First-Team All-ACC honors after catching 61 passes for 1,013 yards and nine scores, while Bell took a massive step forward and logged 43 receptions for 737 yards and four touchdowns. After those two, there was a lot of inconsistency. Caullin Lacy did play well in the games he played, but of course only played four games after a midseason redshirt. Of Louisville's nine players with at least 10 receptions or 100 receiving yards, just five of them were wideouts. Sure, this is partially a byproduct of Brohm's "feed the studs" mindset, but getting consistent receiver play beyond the starters was hard to come by.
2024 Grade: B-
The tight end spot did take a step forward in terms of productivity from the 2023 season, but it still left you wanting a little bit more. Part of this is probably because of Jamari Johnson's midseason injury, but normal starter Mark Redman – while he did finish with 24 receptions for 256 yards and three touchdowns – had multiple games where he was a non-factor. Nate Kurisky probably should have gotten a little more run after he showed potential following Johnson's injury. Not to mention that, with the exception of Duane Martin who is more of a fullback than tight end, the tight end room collectively was not all that great at blocking this season.
2024 Grade: A-
It's a minor miracle what Louisville's offensive line was able to pull off. Monroe Mills had to switch positions because of an injury. Renato Brown had to grit through an injury of his own and split time with Austin Collins because of it. Lance Robinson missed the whole season and Rasheed Miller missed the final month. However, they still finished 23rd nationally in sacks allowed, 22nd in tackles for loss allowed, and had seven games where they did not give up a single sack. There was some choppiness early in the season, especially at right tackle, but once the offensive line rotation was figured out, the Cardinals gave up just two sacks in the final six games of the season.
2024 Grade: B-
Don't get me wrong, the defensive line still had an overall good season. But they were slow to really get going and it feels like they couldn't fully tap into their potential. Ashton Gillotte was still an impactful force, it just didn't translate as much in the sack column as it could have. While players like Thor Griffith, Myles Jernigan and Richard Kinley were a tad underwhelming, guys like Rene Konga, Jared Dawson, Tramel Logan and Jared Dawson had good to great seasons. The Cardinals struggled at times to get push up front early on, but they really rounded into form down the stretch, and help the Cards finish the regular season 40th nationally in both sacks and TFLs.
2024 Grade: C
Collectively, the linebacker excelled in one aspect and were awful in another. On one hand, this position group was fantastic against the run. T.J. Quinn and Stanquan Clark alone combined for 158 tackles as the two leading tacklers on the team. Jurriente Davis and Dan Foster Jr. were serviceable in spurts behind them, T.J. Capers and trent Carter flashed long term potential, while the STAR duo of Antonio Watts and Benjamin Perry did well against the run as well. The problem? For the majority of the season, mainly the first couple months, this unit was flat out atrocious in pass coverage. They eventually got their act together for the final month, but in those first two months, opposing quarterbacks routinely were able to make plays with their arm in the middle of the field.
2024 Grade: C-
On paper, this unit should have been dominant from the jump. Quincy Riley was one of the best defensive backs in the ACC in 2023, while the portal additions of Corey Thornton, Tahveon Nicholson and Tayon Holloway theoretically gave Louisville a very good two deep. However, Riley took a big step back in his efficiency, and was even picked on a few times because of it – but he did finish strong. While Thornton held his own as starter opposite Riley, Nicholson was just okay as a nickel for the most part, and Holloway had a hand in Louisville's bad loss at Stanford (plus was later caught up with the law). For the season, while they weren't terrible, they weren't great either like that should have been. Had this position lived up to their billing, there's very good chance Louisville beats either Notre Dame, Miami or SMU.
2024 Grade: C+
The safety spot for Louisville had some similar struggles that the cornerback spot did at times, but they overall were a little bit better than their boundary counterparts. Tamarion McDonald wound up being a fantastic addition, making plays both on the back end and at the line of scrimmage. While M.J. Griffin was a tad up and down, he still finished his final collegiate season third on the team in tackles with 63. D'Angelo Hutchinson needs to work on tackling, but he still had a breakout year. Did this unit struggle some in coverage? Sure. When you post the 80th-ranked passing defense, there's a lot of blame to go around. But the safety group wasn't nearly as bad as the corners were in this regard.
(Photo of Jeff Brohm: Bob Kupbens – Imagn Images)
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McGavic is a 2016 Sport Administration graduate of the University of Louisville, and a native of the Derby City. He has been covering the Cardinals in various capacities since 2017, with a brief stop in Atlanta, Ga. on the Georgia Tech beat. He is also a co-host of the 'From The Pink Seats' podcast on the State of Louisville network. Video gamer, bourbon drinker and dog lover. Find him on Twitter at @Matt_McGavic
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