Four Cardinals Receive Invitations to 2025 NFL Scouting Combine

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Louisville football program will have a noticeable presence at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine when it kicks off later this month.

On Thursday, the NFL released the list of the 329 prospects that will make their way to Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind. for the combine, and four Cardinals were amongst those who received invitations.

Quarterback Tyler Shough, wide receiver Ja'Corey Brooks, defensive end Ashton Gillotte and cornerback Quincy Riley are the quartet of Cards that were lucky enough to be invited to perform in front of scouts for all 32 NFL teams.

Coming over from Texas Tech to play his final year of collegiate eligibility, Shough was able to play a full healthy season for the first time in his career, and it paid off massive dividends. Starting all 12 regular season games, Shough completed 63.2 percent of his passes for 3,195 yards and 23 touchdowns to just six interceptions.

The 6-foot-5, 225-pound signal caller was the 13th quarterback in school history to throw for 3,000 yards in a single season, most recently accomplished by Jack Plummer last year.

Shough spent the previous three seasons of his collegiate career at Texas Tech, but was unable to play a full season each year, and spent the first three seasons of his collegiate career with Oregon. In 26 career games, he has completed 63.2 percent of his throws for 4,625 yards and 36 touchdowns to 17 interceptions, along with 714 yards and 10 scores on the ground.

Brooks established himself as one of the best receivers in the ACC in his lone year as a Cardinal. The 6-foot-3, 195-pound pass catcher's 1,013 receiving yards were second in the conference to Miami's Xavier Restrepo, while his nine touchdown receptions were third and his 61 receptions 10th. He was voted as a First-Team All-ACC selection for his efforts.

Brooks is the 11th Louisville player to log a 1,000-yard receiving yard season, and the first since Tyler Hudson in 2022. He's also just the fourth Louisville player to have a 1,000-yard and nine-touchdown receiving season, joining Tutu Atwell, Deion Branch and Arnold Jackson - the latter of which did it twice.

Brooks was limited to just three catches for 30 yards in nine games with the Crimson Tide last season due to a shoulder injury, but had proven himself in the past to be a valuable asset. During the 2022 season, the 6-foot-2, 190-pound receiver hauled in 39 receptions for 674 yards and team-best eight touchdowns for the Tide. As a true freshman in 2021, the former five-star prospect caught 15 passes for 192 yards and two touchdowns.

While Gillotte had a little bit of a slow statistical start to his senior campaign, the 6-foot-3, 275-pound edge rusher still managed to be one of the most impactful defensive linemen in the ACC by regular season's end. Starting all 12 regular season games, he finished with 43 total tackles (23 solo), 10 for loss and 4.5 sacks.

The Boca Raton, Fla. native's best season came as a junior in 2023. Starting all 14 games, Gillotte collected 14.5 tackles for loss, 11.0 sacks, three forced fumbles and 45.0 tackles overall. His sack total led the ACC, was good for eighth in the FBS, and was ninth on the single-season sack list in Louisville history.

Gillotte departs the Cardinals as one of their top pass rushers in program history. Playing in 51 career games while starting all 37 games over the last three seasons, his 41.0 career tackles for loss ranks fifth in school history, while his 26.5 sacks comes in at sixth.

Riley also got off to a slow start to his 2024 campaign and was hampered by an ankle injury, but he was still one of the best defensive backs in the ACC. Playing in 10 regular season games while starting eight, the 6-foot-0, 195-pound corner led the ACC in pass break ups with 13, while collecting 33 tackles (21 solo), three for loss, two interceptions and a forced fumble.

The Columbia, S.C native's best season in college came in 2023. He finished the year with a team-best 12 pass breakups, and was second on the Cardinals in interceptions with three, leading the ACC with 15 pass defenses. He also collected 49 tackles and 1.5 for loss.

In 55 career games between three seasons at Louisville and three seasons at Middle Tennessee where he started his collegiate career, Riley collected 159 tackles (112 solo), 12 for loss, 2.5 sacks, 15 interceptions, 40 pass break ups and a forced fumble.

The 2025 NFL Scouting Combine starts on February 24 and lasts through March 3. Coverage from the combine, as well as it's various activities, will air on the NFL Network.

(Photo of Ja'Corey Brooks: Bob Kupbens - Imagn Images)

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