Highlights & Evaluation: Louisville WR Commit Chuck Alexander Jr.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Louisville football program secured a bit time commitment just hours after drubbing Kentucky in the Governor's Cup, with Chuck Alexander Jr. opting to give his verbal pledge to the Cardinals.

Here is Louisville Cardinals On SI's full evaluation:

Prospect: Charles "Chuck" Alexander Jr.
Position: Wide Receiver
Measurables: 6-foot-3, 180 pounds
School: Cincinnati (Oh.) Withrow
Top Offers: Cincinnati, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Pitt
247Sports Composite Rating (Nat'l Rank): 0.9116 (274th)

Chuck Alexander Jr.'s Junior Year Highlights: HERE (Hudl)

Frame: Alexander has a very good base frame for a wide receiver. He obviously has great positional height, and looks to have a wingspan that is just as long, or at least close to it. Muscle tone is little lean/wiry right now, but he has plenty of space to add to it, and has ample time to do so.

Athleticism: Even with a somewhat wiry frame, Alexander already has a very high level of play strength. He also has well above average sustained straight line speed in the open field, and as expected, has a great vertical to go with it. His overall burst is about average for a bigger bodied wideout, and his lateral agility could be a bit better.

Instincts: One of the first things that stands out on Alexander's film is his ability to keep moving downfield even when facing traffic. He is incredibly tough to take down in one-on-one tackle situations, and can play straight through multiple defenders thanks to his fantastic contact balance that usually requires multiple people to bring him down. And that's after the catch. Alexander is very consistent with his hands, and thanks in part to his wingspan, he has a large catch radius and is great on deep or contested routes where he has to high point the ball. He also has great overall body control on sideline and diving catches thank to his physical nature, which also bodes well as a blocker.

Polish: Alexander is an excellent deep ball threat despite not being an absolute burner, and while he glides well on posts and corners, he has otherwise shown a somewhat limited route tree. This is primarily because, with his lateral agility leaving a little to be desired, his actual route running needs a lot of refining. He's shown solid flashes on shallow out breaking routes, but that's really it. While is performs very well against press coverage due to his physical nature, his actual release off the line of scrimmage is average at best. Alexander mainly lines up as an outside receiver (usually the X), but has taken reps in the slot or as a gadget, and even has some special teams experience as a kick returner.

Bottom Line: Overall, this is a very good pickup for Louisville. Alexander will absolutely have to refine his footwork and add a bit more weight to his frame, but otherwise, he is in a very good spot in terms of his development as a pass catcher. It wouldn't be shocking to see him be in the mix for early playing time once he gets on campus.

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