Identifying Potential Breakout Candidates for Louisville in 2022

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Heading into the 2022 season, the Louisville football program has some moderately high expectations. With the Cardinals returning impact playmakers like Malik Cunningham, Yasir Abdullah, Kei'Trel Clark and Caleb Chandler, there is a belief amongst the program and fanbase that Louisville can get back to their winning ways in the fourth year of the Scott Satterfield.

But if the Cardinals are to make some noise in the ACC this season and potentially contend for a conference championship, they're going to need a team-wide effort to get there. The proven veterans will have to keep playing at a high level, and the younger or relatively inexperiences players will have to take meaningful strides forward in their respective games

That being said, who are some players for Louisville that fall into that latter category? Louisville Report has identified six players, three on each side of the ball, that could have breakout seasons in 2022:

WR Ahmari Huggins-Bruce

We've already seen several flashes of what Huggins-Bruce can do with the ball in his hands. Last season as just a true freshman, he hauled in 29 receptions for 444 yards and four touchdowns, putting on display both his agility and speed. This upcoming season, Huggins-Bruce has the potential to put up even gaudier numbers. With Jordan Watkins, Tyler Harrell and Justin Marshall all transferring out, and Braden Smith still in the process of recovering from his knee injury last season, Huggins-Bruce will take on a much bigger role in 2022. Tyler Hudson will likely be WR1 in the passing game due to his prior experience from Central Arkansas, but Huggins-Bruce has system familiarity, and could use that to his advantage. He's already proficient in screens, sweeps and running after the catch on short routes, but if he can add to his route tree to also become a threat deeper down the field, he has All-ACC potential.

OT Michael Gonzalez

Louisville saw several true freshman make an impact in some form or fashion last year, but the one who saw the field the most on offense was Gonzalez at 446 total snaps. With Hudson making the transition from backup to starter, Gonzalez could be this year's "sixth man" on the offensive line. According to PFF, he graded as the third-best true freshman offensive tackle in the Power Five (65.8), trailing only LSU's Garrett Dellinger (72.3) and West Virginia's Wyatt Milum (70.4). He'll need to work on his consistency as a run blocker, but he logged five games with a pass blocking grade of 78 or more (around 70 is average). He'll see plenty of time at both left and right tackle, and could very well challenge Trevor Reid or Renato Brown for a starting spot.

RB Jawhar Jordan

Louisville has an embarrassment of riches in the running backs room. Tiyon Evans was Tennessee's leading rusher last season before suffering an ankle injury, Jalen Mitchell led the position with 772 yards and five touchdowns last year, and Trevion Cooley showed superstar potential in spurts last year with his 431 yards and 5.0 rushing average. But keep an eye out for Jordan, especially considering he was recently named a co-starter with the other three on Louisville's preseason depth chart. He joined the program during fall camp last year, and combined with an injury, he didn't get to see much of the field at all last year. But he certainly turned some heads in the First Responder Bowl vs. Air Force. He finished that game with 216 all-purpose yards, including a 100-yard kick return for a touchdown. Now that he has a an actual offseason to prepare, he could become one of the most dangerous return men in the ACC. It's a very small sample size (14 rushes for 95 yards and touchdown), but he also rushed for 6.7 yards per carry, which adds to the overall depth at running back.

NT Caleb Banks

For the first time in several years, Louisville heads into the season with some optimism at nose tackle. Arizona State transfer Jermayne Lole is a legitimate NFL prospect, and Dezmond Tell has made tremendous strides over the offseason in terms of his body. But don't be surprised to see Banks get his fair share of reps in the middle of the line. He gives the Cardinals incredible size at 6-foot-7 and 300 pounds, but also has a surprising amount of athleticism for a player of that size. He took a redshirt year last season, and defensive line coach Mark Ivey told Louisville Report earlier this offseason that Banks has "a lot of things he's going to be able to do," and that he is "truly untapped right now." It's going to be hard to fight for reps as the third man on the depth chart, but Banks has too much potential to not see the field, and could be a force to be reckoned with when he finally gets his shot.

OLB/S Benjamin Perry

He didn't get to see much time on the field last year in a relatively crowded safety room, but now that he's made the switch to his more natural position at CARD outside linebacker, we might finally get to see Perry's potential on the gridiron. He came to Louisville as a top-400 prospect and the top-ranked played in the Cardinals' 2021 recruiting class, but only saw time in four games last year. Considering that Louisville has him as a starter over Marvin Dallas in their preseason depth chart after logging just four tackles last year, he has made a ton of progress over the offseason, and could be primed to burst onto the scene and be a crucial component of the front seven and defense as a whole.

S Josh Minkins

Minkins was another player who had a really good spring, and if you ask the coaches, he was one of the biggest standouts in spring ball. He was on track to have a breakout campaign in 2021, until a shoulder injury suffered last offseason derailed that chance. Now that he's healthy and is entering his third year with the program, the freshly-minted starter has a chance to make a profound and much needed impact on the back end. Co-defensive coordinator Wes McGriff told Louisville Report earlier this offseason that Minkins has been "really stepping up as a leader," and that he has done a good job in practice of "keying and diagnosing, and making adjustments on run."

(Photo of Josh Minkins: Matt Stone - Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK)

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