Jake Cook Takes 'Amazing' Visit to Louisville, Continuing to Develop Relationship with Cards

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - As one of the first Class of 2025 prospects to commit to the Louisville football program, Jake Cook was certainly no stranger to the Cardinals at the time of his commitment. Prior to giving his verbal pledge back in February, the Westerville (Oh.) HS offensive lineman had taken three unofficial visits to the Derby City.

This past weekend, in what was his first time being back on campus since committing, Cook took his first official visit to Louisville. The visit only reenforced his decision to play his college ball with the Cards.

"The visit was amazing, it’s always awesome being back on campus,' Cook told Louisville Report. "Such a great place to be with great people."

Over the course of his recruitment, and especially since committing, Cook has developed a "very strong" relationship with the Louisville staff. This is especially the case with offensive line coach Richard Owens and graduate assistant Noah Fisher, and his relationship with head coach Jeff Brohm has further strengthened as well, especially after the visit.

"Coach Owens and Coach Fisher I’ve developed a great relationship, whether it be talking about the X's and O's of football or just casual talk," Cook said. "Also, my relationship with coach Brohm has grown a lot. I talk with him on the phone a lot and was with him most of the visit."

While his favorite aspect of the program has been the coaching staff, he's also a big fan of the style of offense that Brohm and Co. like to run. Cook loves their "pro-style offense" that cater to both the pass and the run, and says it's "made for getting guys developed for the next level."

On top of continuing to foster relationships with his future coaches, Cook has spent a lot of time getting to know his future teammates as well. He was one of four Louisville commitments to take an official visit to campus this past weekend, with a fifth giving his verbal pledge soon afterwards. He got to know some of the current players as well, and has been actively trying to recruit other 2025 prospects to commit to the Cardinals as well.

"My relationship with the 2025 guys is super strong, especially after this weekend," he said. "We went out together and were together the whole time. Also hanging around the players and meeting them was awesome. (Recruiting coordinator) Pete (Nochta) was my host, very good dude.

Cook has so far had a fantastic offseason out on the recruiting circuits ever since committing to Louisville. Not only was he named the offensive line MVP at an Under Armour Next camp in late April, he also earned offensive line MVP honors at a Rivals camp in mid-May.

"He had an excellent day and the improvement from last year's camp to this year's camp was stark," 247Sports' Allen Trieu wrote after watching Cook at the Under Armour Next camp. "For one thing, he has trimmed down, is moving better, and looks like he's been working on his technique as well. He brings a competitive mentality in addition to that. He was a riser from the event."

As a result, Cook has seen a meteoric rise in his status as a prospect. He's now ranked as high as the No. 201 recruit in the 2025 cycle according to Rivals, and comes in as the 611th-ranked prospect by the 247Sports Composite.

Because of this, he has started to generate interest among some of the top programs in college football. Most notably, Ohio State - which is just under 20 miles away from Westerville HS - has been trying to insert themselves into the mix over the last few months.

Even with his hometown team upping their recruitment efforts, Cook reiterates that he is still a Cardinal.

"I’m all Louisville!," Cook said.

(Photo of Jake Cook via University of Louisville Athletics)

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