Utility weapon? Full time tight end? Trick play specialist? What the numbers say about how Jeff Brohm may utilize Joey Gatewood for Louisville football.
With Louisville football having major roster turnover at some of the most important positions, it is time that we get to know some of these players on a more intimate level. Leading up to kick off we will look at some of the advanced stats from Pro Football Focus for our new players.
This is your chance to be the smartest friend in your group, so make sure you pay attention.
Today we are going to look at the most versatile new weapon, Joey Gatewood.
Unlike the previous breakdowns we are going to look at one season from each of the schools he has suited up for.
Let’s take a look at the numbers.
By the Numbers Series on State of Louisville:
Auburn 2019
Passing
As a passer in 2019 Gatewood completed 5 of his 7 passes for 49 yards and 2 touchdowns. Although his attempts were severely limited, he did grade out as a 79.8 on those attempts and his adjusted completion percentage was 71.4%.
I smell a trick play weapon…
Rushing
As a runner Gatewood was far more active for Auburn. He had 34 rushing attempts turning that into 149 yards and 3 touchdowns. He was able to gain 80 yards after contact and had 8 explosive plays of 10 plus yards including a long of 18.
Kentucky 2020
Passing
While at Kentucky he was given the chance to throw the ball 35 times and completed 17 of those attempts. He had 109 passing yards an adjusted completion percentage of 60.6%. Of those attempts 26 were attempted to the short parts of the fields. Although he had 7 attempts to the medium and deep parts of the field, he was unable to get a completion.
Rushing
As a runner Joey was given 20 attempts for 87 yards. He had a long run of 14 yards but was unable to get in the endzone while committing 1 fumble.
UCF 2021
Passing
At UCF Gatewood completed 2 of his 7 pass attempts for 17 yards and 1 touchdown. He also had an adjusted completion percentage of 66.7%. Both of his completions came in the middle of the field behind the line of scrimmage.
Rushing
Joey was given 25 attempts to run the ball in 2021 accounting for 150 yards and 1 touchdown. He was able to gain 73 yards after contact and racked up 6 explosive runs of 10+ yards including a long of 20 yards.
There was no tackling Joey Gatewood. @UCF_Football TD
— CBS Sports Network (@CBSSportsNet) October 2, 2021pic.twitter.com/fW1pAXlEuv
Breakdown
Up to this point in his career Joey Gatewood has been a bit of a journeyman trying to find a way to make his mark on a team. For Auburn and UCF, he was little more than a gimmick player giving the defense a different look to game plan for. At Kentucky he was given a little more of a real opportunity but was unable to make much of a difference on the team.
Here at Louisville, he is going to be given the chance to do something new and hopefully finally find a way to breakout as a key player for an offense. The Tight end position is a position that is vital to a Jeff Brohm offense, but we are yet to have someone grab hold of that position and claim it as theirs. This is where Gatewood can make a difference.
He is 6’4 and weighs 245 pounds. He has the athleticism to make a difference and be a contributor in an offense that excels at getting athletes in space and letting them do their thing. If, and it is an if, he is good enough to claim that no.1 TE spot then it could finally be his time to show the world what he can do. If he is unable to do that, I fear that he will be little more than the player he was at Auburn and UCF.
I know that the entire Louisville community is pulling for him to finally reach the expectations he had entering college. We’ll learn a lot when the first depth chart is released.
