'26 DL Josiah Hope Flips from Louisville to Purdue Again

The North Hardin product has now flipped from the Cardinals to Purdue twice.

Radcliff (Ky.) North Hardin defensive tackle Josiah Hope and Louisville defensive line coach Mark Hagen | via Twitter/X

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - As it turns out, Josiah Hope will not play for the Louisville football program after all.

The Radcliff (Ky.) North Hardin defensive lineman, who re-committed to the Cardinals following a back-and-forth period with Purdue during the summer, announced Wednesday that he has flipped his verbal pledge back to the Boilermakers for a second time.

Hope, one of the top in-state prospects in the Class of 2026, originally committed to Louisville back on June 1. But after taking an official visit to Purdue soon afterwards, he backed off his verbal pledge to the Cardinals on June 15 before committing to the Boilermakers on June 22. One month later on July 23, he flipped back to UofL.

The 6-foot-3, 300-pound tackle ranks as high as the No. 26 defensive lineman in the Class of 2026, and the No. 1 prospect in Kentucky per ESPN's rankings. Hope comes in as the No. 424 prospect nationally and the top-ranked player in the state, per the 247Sports Composite.

Louisville is back to a 20-man recruiting class in the 2026 cycle. Earlier in the day, which is the first day of the early signing period, they flipped and signed offensive lineman Benjamin Corhei away from USF. The Cardinals are expected to officially sign all 20 prospects by the end of the day.

(Photo of Josiah Hope, Mark Hagen via Twitter/X)

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