Scott Satterfield Provides Injury Update Ahead of Virginia Matchup
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The injury bug has not been kind to the Louisville football program in recent weeks.
In successive games against UCF and Florida State, the Cardinals lost key pieces for the season on both sides of the football. First, inside linebacker Monty Montgomery suffered a torn right ACL against the Knights, then wide receiver Braden Smith had 'some ligaments' torn in his left knee.
Louisville's most recent game against Wake Forest was no different. Defensive end Ashton Gillotte, offensive tackle Renato Brown and outside linebacker Kam Wilson all exited last Saturday's game against the Demon Deacons and did not return.
During his weekly press conference Monday, head coach Scott Satterfield provided an injury update to all three. Fortunately, two of the three seemed to have avoided significant injuries, and could potentially see action against Virginia this weekend.
"Renato (Brown) and Ashton (Gillotte) will be day-to-day," he said. "We'll check on those guys, they're coming around, but they're listed right now as day-to-day. Whether or not they play this week still remains to be seen."
Satterfield added that with a bye week coming up following their game vs. Virginia, that he feels "certain" the two will be able to play in the next game after against Boston College on Oct. 23.
As for Wilson, unfortunately, his prognosis was not as positive, as Satterfield announced that he will miss six to eight weeks. That would put his return, at minimum, for Louisville's matchup against Syracuse on Nov. 13.
"It's unfortunate, because we thought he was coming off pretty strong. He was in some packages for defense," Satterfield said. Wilson had played primarily in a special teams role through the first five games of the season.
Louisville did receive some good news on the injury front. Wide receiver Shai Werts, who exited the season-opener vs. Ole Miss with a lower body strain, is very likely to see the field against the Cavaliers this weekend.
"He'll probably be back this week," Satterfield said. "He was close last week. We put him out in warm-ups, and I thought he looked pretty good last week. Hopefully this week he'll get a full practice throughout the week and be available."
Gillotte, a true freshman, was having a brilliant start to his collegiate career. He currently is second on the team in both sacks and tackles for loss with 3.0 and 5.5, respectively, trailing only Yasir Abdullah.
Brown, Louisville's starting right tackle since the start of the season, was Louisville's top-graded offensive lineman against both UCF and FSU, according to Pro Football Focus.
Werts came over from Georgia Southern during the offseason, and made the transition from dual threat quarterback to receiver. Last season, the graduate transfer completed 60.2% of his passes for eight touchdowns and 1,062 yards, while rushing for an additional 720 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Kickoff vs. Virginia is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 9 at 3:00 p.m. EST.
(Photo of Ashton Gillotte: University of Louisville Athletics)
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