Examining the Potential Transfer Impact on Louisville Football in 2020

So far, the Louisville Cardinals have added three transfers during the current offseason. What kind of impact could they have on the upcoming 2020 season?

It has been a busy offseason out on the recruiting trail for the Louisville Football program, but most of their efforts have gone towards high schoolers heading into their senior year. After all, the Cardinals feature a 2021 class that ranks as high as No. 13 in the nation (Rivals) in Scott Satterfield's first full recruiting cycle.

But the coaching staff has spent a little bit of time working the transfer portal as well. So far, the Cards have attracted three transfers in this offseason: offensive lineman Cam DeGeorge, cornerback Kei'Trel Clark and wide receiver Roscoe Johnson.

While it might take a little bit of time for these newcomers to get acclimated to a new program and atmosphere, all three have the potential to have a sizable impact on the upcoming 2020 season.

First we'll start with DeGeorge, who committed to Louisville back in March as a graduate transfer from the University of Connecticut. An offensive guard by trade, he's made the transition to the tackle position and is listed as the backup right tackle behind Renato Brown according to Louisville's 2020 preseason depth chart.

He might be a backup, but expect DeGeorge to see his fair share of playing time - and thats not a knock against Brown. After redshirting his freshman year with the Huskies, he went onto start 34 of UConn's next 36 games. DeGeorge isn't the most tenured Cardinal on the offensive line, but the wealth of in-game experience is a huge boost to a unit that lost two of their five starters this offseason.

"It's hard to replace that type of experience that you get from playing games," Offensive Coordinator Dwayne Ledford told reporters in June. "We'll go out and try "X" amount of scrimmages leading up to a season to try to replicate speed and what the games are like, but there's nothing that takes the place of a game."

Next we have Clark, who committed to Louisville earlier this month after spending just one season with Liberty University. Of course we have to include the caveat that he may not even get to play this season. He'll have to have his waiver to play immediately approved by the NCAA - something that even Satterfield is unsure about.

Regardless of when he gets to see the gridiron as a Card, he will arguably be the most impactful transfer to have joined the program this offseason. As a freshman with the Flames, he played in all 13 games and eventually worked his way into the starting rotation. 247Sports analyst Yancy Porter went so far as to call Clark "truly an SEC talent" that can "play anywhere he wants".

"We're excited to get him," head coach Scott Satterfield told reporters on Monday. "We think he's a great player and a hard worker. He's going to fit our culture great. We're just excited to get him here."

If the NCAA grants him a waiver to play in 2020, he adds depth to a position group where the backups are relatively inexperienced. If he has to wait until 2021, he can serve as a leader to the six defensive backs currently committed to Louisville in the Class of 2021. Two of the four starting defensive backs on the preseason depth chart - safeties Russ Yeast & Isaiah Hayes - are set to graduate after this season.

Finally we have wide receiver graduate transfer Roscoe Johnson, Louisville's latest transfer portal addition. At first glance, some might be quick to deduce that this is not a major addition to the roster. In three seasons for North Carolina, he amassed 14 receptions for 157 yards and was primarily used on special teams in his final season as a Tar Heel.

But take a deeper look at UNC's roster, and it makes sense as to why Johnson was under utilized. Not only did the Tar Heels have a pair of 1,000-yard receivers in the form of Dazz Newsome & Dyami Brown last season, but their 2019 roster featured a whopping 20 wide receivers including Johnson. It would be hard for a lot of Power Five type receivers to see meaningful playing time in that situation.

While Johnson will be the 14th wide receiver on Louisville's 2020 roster, depth and experience are still a bit of an issue at the position if you would believe it. The Cardinals are only returning four wide receivers who made a catch last year - Tutu Atwell, Dez Fitzpatrick, Justin Marshall and Josh Johnson.

He might not bring the experience that say DeGeorge or Clark does to their position group per se, but it is experience & depth nonetheless at a position group that sorely needed both. Plus, anyone that has a work ethic good enough for receivers coach Gunter Brewer should be enough for fans to know that he is a solid pick up. Brewer offered Johnson a scholarship back in 2016 when he held the same position at North Carolina.

"Coach Brewer had a relationship with Roscoe so he knew him and felt really good about bringing him on," Satterfield said. "Just his work ethic, and he's another guy that can run - he's a speed guy as well. He didn't catch a ton of balls at North Carolina but we feel like he can add to us in the special teams aspect and also give us depth in the wide receiver room."

You can follow us for future coverage by clicking "Follow" on the top righthand corner of the page. Also be sure to like us on Facebook & Twitter:

Facebook - @LouisvilleOnSI

Twitter - @LouisvilleOnSI and Matthew McGavic at @GeneralWasp