How Louisville football rebuilt the secondary in one offseason

Louisville football lost the majority of a solid secondary from 2020, but the Cardinals coaching staff may have worked wonders in the offseason.

Louisville football appears to finally have an ACC caliber defense again in 2021. However, the making of the Cardinals secondary- a perceived strength of the 2021 squad- is thanks to a commendable effort by Scott Satterfield and his staff.

In 2020, Louisville football ranked 17th in the nation in passing defense, allowing just 189.2 yards per game through the air.

While it was far from Louisville’s most talented secondary in recent years, it was senior-laden.

The other side of the story is that Louisville’s run defense was seriously lacking in 2020.

UofL’s 179.9 rushing yards allowed per game was good for 80th in the country.

Opponents recognized Louisville’s deficiencies on the defensive line as well. The opposition passed the ball 41 percent of the time compared to 59 percent rushing plays.

An offseason overhaul

In the 2021 offseason, defensive coordinator Bryan Brown faced a complete overhaul of his secondary.

Louisville football lost both starting safeties, Russ Yeast and Isaiah Hayes. Gone is veteran corner Marlon Character and transfer Marqui Lowery. Presumed starting safety Lovie Jenkins is not with the team after a run-in with the law in the offseason.

Finally, veteran safety Jack Fagot has switched positions, playing mostly at the CARD linebacker.

Louisville did return All-Conference corner Kei’Trel Clark and on-and-off starter Chandler Jones. Defensive Back Greedy Vance saw his playing time increase as last season progressed, and he will serve as an excellent supplemental piece.

However, the rest of the Cardinals’ secondary needed to be pieced together quickly. Louisville quite literally returns zero production at the safety spots.

That’s why Brown and Satterfield dipped into the transfer portal like their jobs depended on it.

Grad transfer gems

In the offseason, Louisville football secured two major pieces in graduate transfers Kenderick Duncan and Qwynnterrio Cole.

Duncan is a specimen at safety. He is 6’3″ and the coaching staff says he is up to 230 or 235 pounds. While he looks more like a linebacker, Duncan has excellent ball skills and closing speed. In 2019, Duncan had 79 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, eight pass breakups, two interceptions, and forced a fumble. He sat out most of 2020 with an injury but looks to be a lock as the starting free safety.

Relevant: What Kenderick Duncan brings to the table for Louisville football

His fellow grad transfer, Cole, is turning heads in practice. Jordan Reid of the Draft Network explained why Cole, an Alcorn State alum, is a steal for the Cards.

“Qwynnterrio Cole is an extremely well-put-together safety prospect that’s chiseled and one that already possesses a readymade body structure. After playing in a reserve role during his first season for the Braves, Cole has been the patrol cop on the back end of the defense since that point. A true ball-hawk type of safety, he has recorded seven interceptions since stepping into a starting role as a sophomore (2018).

A prospect whose length looks exactly as his measurables indicate, the team has used him all over the field. He has highlight plays of getting off of the hash in deep zones and he is also often used as a sniffer around the line of scrimmage where he finished third on the team in tackles (86) on his way to becoming a two-time HBCU All-American and SWAC All-Conference First-Team player. He is truly a right place, right time type of safety that’s been able to cause many turnovers. Cole is a high-IQ football player that has been utilized in multiple roles. He shows lots of physicality and it’s evident when tackling. A sure wrap-up tackler, he’s often able to bring ball carriers to the ground with minimal help, all while demonstrating proper techniques for consistency when targets are within his sight.”

Also: How Cole fits with Louisville football

Both Cole and Duncan were fringe late-round draft choices after last season. Their additions make the Louisville football secondary extremely scary right away.

Finally, Louisville’s depth in the secondary was solidified with the addition of a really strong 2021 freshman class.

Strong Safety Ben Perry is the gem of the 2021 class. A highly intelligent prospect, Perry committed to the Cards over schools like Oregon and West Virginia, but also had offers from Yale, Brown, and Northwestern. Perry figures to be right there with Cole for the starting strong safety spot.

Additionally, Louisville brings in a talented trio of defensive backs in Bralyn Oliver, Kani Walker, and Derrick Edwards who all figure to see playing time this season.

Brown has some prototype DBs at his disposal that are quite capable of being the ball-hawking, hard-hitting studs that he found in Clark last year.

Louisville football began the offseason in a ton of trouble in the secondary. Now, however, the Cards’ back four could ultimately be the strength of the team.