Louisville to host large group of recruits for the Virginia game

Louisville football will be hosting an impressive group of high school and junior college recruits for the Virginia game. The group is headlined by 2021 defensive end Travion Ford out of Missouri. Current commit Braden Smith will be in for his official visit as well as Jakorian Bennett who is a JUCO cornerback prospect. Let’s go through some of the top players who are scheduled to be in town.

TRAVION FORD - 2021

Ford is the biggest name on campus this weekend. He is ranked as the fourth best weakside defensive end in the country and the 81st overall player in the 247 composite. Ford is a long and lanky player who has a frame that can add significant bulk. Personally, I think he has even more value because he could potentially play outside linebacker or defensive end depending on how he grows and develops. He has offers from just about everyone including Alabama, Ohio State, Texas, LSU, Michigan, and FSU. This will be Ford’s second visit to campus.

JAKORIAN BENNETT - 2020

This staff puts speed as a top priority and Bennett has speed to burn. He reportedly runs a 4.33 forty yard dash and it looks like that shows up on film. More importantly, he shows a good ability to play the ball in the air and he can line up at different spots in the secondary. I’m always a bit wary of guys who don’t have offers out of high school and end up as JUCO recruits but there’s a lot to like about Bennett. He has offers from SMU, Houston, Illinois, and Maryland. I get the feeling that UofL is in good shape here.

ELIJAH HOWARD - 2021

Louisville doesn’t seem to be looking too hard at a running back in the 2020 class but Howard seems to be one of the few guys they’re targeting for next year. Howard is committed to Tennessee but he picked up an offer from UofL last week and I think it’s a good sign that they are already getting him on campus. I really love Howard as a prospect. He fits the scheme well as he’s able to make one cut and take off. He also has outstanding speed and makes guys miss in the open field. He’s a guy to keep an eye on with Javian Hawkins having such a good year. Guys will start to take notice.

KYRAN MONTGOMERY - 2021

Louisville will be working to add guys on the defensive front for a couple of years and they’ve spent some time targeting some impressive players in the 2021 class. Montgomery has a handful of Big Ten offers so far and Louisville has some work to do. He’s another long athlete with a great frame that should be able to add bulk. I’m intrigued by this recruitment because he’s right in the middle of Big Ten country and landing him would be a sign for this staff as recruiters.

JORDAN WATKINS - 2020

Watkins has been on Louisville’s campus each week since he decommitted from Kentucky. At this point it seems like a question of “when” and not “if” when it comes to his potential commitment. If Watkins was taking visits to other schools I wouldn’t feel that way but recruits don’t typically keep going back to schools unless they enjoy themselves. In my opinion, Watkins is the type of talent that would see the field early at Louisville and could add an option as a return man. He’s an unbelievably explosive player and he’s elusive in the open field. Louisville landing Watkins would give them two receivers in the class that have been clocked at sub-4.4 in the forty.

Here’s the full list of recruits that are expected for the game. Here’s what I believe is a quick key:

Green: Official visitors

Yellow: Recruits with offers

Red lettering: Committed Recruits