Looking Back at Louisville Football's 2018 Recruiting Class
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - With Lamar Jackson winning the Heisman Trophy in 2016 and being a finalist for the award in 2017, then-head coach Bobby Petrino had a great opportunity to translate that into momentum on the recruiting trail for the 2018 cycle.
Of course, Petrino would never last to see the fruits of his labor pan out. The Cardinals went just 2-10 in 2018, and he was fired ten games into the season.
That being said, how did his final recruiting class at Louisville turn out? Below is every scholarship signee from the 2018 class in alphabetical order, coupled with notes on how they panned out at Louisville:
Yasir Abdullah
Position: EDGE/Linebacker
UofL Career Stats: 210 tackles (124 solo), 43.0 for loss, 23.5 sacks, 11 pass deflections, three interception, eight forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries (61 games).
It's not hyperbole to say that Abdullah wound up being one of the top defenders in Louisville history. He was one of the most productive defenders in the ACC over the past two seasons, being named Second-Team All-ACC in 2021 and the ACC Defensive Player of the Year runner-up in 2022. He is tied for the second-most tackles for loss, has the eighth-most sacks and is tied for the fourth-most forced fumbles in Louisville history. Abdullah was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars in last month's NFL Draft.
Tutu Atwell
Position: Wide Receiver
UofL Career Stats: 139 receptions for 2,303 yards and 21 touchdowns (34 games).
Make that back-to-back NFL Draft picks. After a quiet freshman year, Atwell burst onto the scene in Scott Satterfield's first year at the helm in 2019. That season, he led the ACC with 1,276 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns. The latter marked tied the single-season school record while the former broke it, and he was tabbed as a First-Team All-ACC selection and PFF First-Team All-American. He had a bit of a down 2020 campaign due in part to injuries, but it was still enough to be picked by the Los Angeles Rams in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Adonis Boone
Position: Offensive Guard/Tackle
UofL Career Stats: 48 games.
Boone was always overshadowed by guys like Mekhi Becton and Caleb Chandler, but he was a reliable lineman during his five years at Louisville. After being mostly a reserve over his first two season, he was elevated to starting left tackle in 2020. He made the permanent transition to right guard, where he was the regular starter in 2021 and 2022. He went unselected in the 2023 NFL Draft, and has yet to sign a UDFA deal.
Michael Boykin
Position: Defensive End
UofL Career Stats: Nine tackles (four solo), 0.5 for loss (10 games).
Boykin originally signed with Louisville during the 2016 cycle, but had to go the JUCO route for two years due to academic issues. He finally made it to Louisville in 2018 and even started four games, but wound up transferring to Tennessee State after the season. He spent his final season in 2020 with North Alabama.
Jairus Brents
Position: Cornerback
UofL Career Stats: None.
Despite being Louisville's highest-ranked signee in the cycle, he would never play a down for the Cardinals. He was arrested in Mar. of 2018 stemming from a misdemeanor theft charge and was cleared to practice with the team in August, but entered the portal after the 2018 season. He spent 2019 out of football, and eventually signed with Eastern Kentucky ahead of the 2020 season.
Marlon Character
Position: Cornerback
UofL Career Stats: 83 tackles (64 solo), 4.0 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, seven pass breakups, one interception, one forced fumble (26 games).
Character joined Louisville from the JUCO ranks, and flew mainly under the radar during his time with the Cardinals. After a quiet first season in 2018, he then became a solid piece in the secondary, shuffling in and out of the starting lineup during the 2019 and 2020 seasons. He went undrafted in 2021, but signed as a UDFA with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Dejmi Dumervil-Jean
Position: Defensive Tackle
UofL Career Stats: Seven tackles (one solo), 0.5 tackles for loss (11 games).
The nephew of former Louisville All-American Elvis Dumervil, Dejmi spent just one season with the Cardinals before issues with his weight caused him to have to sit out due to medical reasons. He passed away in Nov. of 2021.
Thurman Geathers
Position: Defensive End/Outside Linebacker
UofL Career Stats: Four tackles (all assisted), 0.5 tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks, three quarterback hurries (19 games)
Geathers redshirted his true freshman campaign and did see a fair amount of run on special teams at Louisville, but he was not utilized much on defense once Satterfield took over. After playing in the first six games of 2020, he then opted out of the remainder of the season and eventually transferred to Arkansas State.
Jared Goldwire
Position: Defensive Tackle
UofL Career Stats: 82 tackles (45 solo), 10.0 tackles for loss, 4.0 sacks, four pass deflections, one fumble recovery (29 games)
Goldwire was another addition from the JUCO ranks, and was a consistent piece of Louisville's defensive line for three seasons. He saved the best for last, setting career-highs with 35 tackles and 5.0 tackles for loss. He opted not to take advantage of COVID waiver and return for a fourth season with the Cardinals, then signed as a UDFA with the Los Angeles Chargers after going undrafted.
Hassan Hall
Position: Running Back
UofL Career Stats: 270 rushing attempts for 1,299 yards and 11 touchdowns, 22 receptions for 175 yards, 95 kick returns for 2,367 return yards and two touchdowns (42 games)
Hall was an extremely versatile all-purpose back during his time as a Cardinal, but almost always found himself as a backup at Louisville. He was their leading rusher in 2018 as a true freshman, but lost out on the starting job to Javian Hawkins for the 2019 and 2020 seasons. After playing third fiddle to Jalen Mitchell and Trevion Cooley in 2021, mainly due to some issues with fumbles, he opted to transfer to Georgia Tech for his final year in college. He's now with the Cleveland Browns as an undrafted free agent.
Tyler Harrell
Position: Wide Receiver
UofL Career Stats: 20 receptions for 559 yards and 6 touchdowns (15 games).
Harrell is one of the fastest players in all of college football, but didn't see regular playing time until the 2021 season. That year, he logged 523 receiving yards and six touchdowns on just 18 receptions. He was poised for another big step forward in 2022, but surprisingly transferred to Alabama just after spring ball. He is back in the transfer portal after a foot injury limited his usage and availability with the Crimson Tide last season.
Jatavious Harris
Position: Wide Receiver
UofL Career Stats: None.
Harris only played in the first three games of Louisville's 2018 season, then rode the bench for the rest of the year. He would follow Boykin to Tennessee State after the season.
Javian Hawkins
Position: Running Back
UofL Career Stats: 399 rushes for 2,355 yards and 16 touchdowns, 21 receptions for 189 yards and one touchdown (23 games).
Like Atwell, Hawkins exploded once Satterfield entered the picture in 2019. That year, he rushed for 1,525 yards to break the single-season school record by a running back, with the mark also being good for seventh in D1. He also collected eight rushing touchdowns that season, earning Second-Team All-ACC honors. In 2020, he rushed for 822 yards and seven touchdowns in eight games before opting out for the remainder of the season. He went undrafted, but did join Atwell with the Rams as a UDFA.
Quen Head
Position: Linebacker
UofL Career Stats: 13 tackles (seven solo), one fumble recovery (23 games)
Another JUCO transfer, Head served almost exclusively as a special teamer during his two years at Louisville. He played 273 snaps on special teams over the 2018 and 2019 seasons, compared to just 66 snaps on defense during that time.
Robert Hicks
Position: Linebacker
UofL Career Stats: 40 tackles (22 solo), 4.0 tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks (24 games)
Hicks had a solid season for a true freshman, logging 24 tackles (13 solo) with two tackles for loss and half a sack, but that wound up being his best season at Louisville. A crowded linebacker room in the 2019 and 2020 seasons cut deeply into his playing time, and he opted to transfer to UT-Martin for his final two years in college.
Jarrett Jackson
Position: Defensive End/Tackle
UofL Career Stats: 16 tackles (nine solo), 3.0 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, one pass deflection, one forced fumble (10 games).
Jackson was another player that showed loads of promise during his true freshman campaign. However, he transferred to Florida State not long after Petrino was fired, and spent three years with the Seminoles. He entered the portal again this past December, and will spend his final season at Michigan State.
Chandler Jones
Position: Cornerback
UofL Career Stats: 140 tackles (101 solo), 8.0 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, two interceptions, 24 pass breakups, two forced fumbles (55 games)
Jones was a regular fixture of Louisville's secondary for five season, bouncing between starter and go-to reserve. Following a relatively quiet true freshman year, he had a career-year in 2019 as a sophomore, logging 50 tackles (40 solo) with 4.5 tackles for loss, a sack, an interception, ten pass breakups and two forced fumbles. While he remained solid in his final three years, he was never quite able to recapture that 2019 form.
Allen Love
Position: Defensive Tackle
UofL Career Stats: Four tackles, three solo (4 games).
Love played in just 81 combined defensive and special teams snaps as a true freshman before leaving Louisville in the offseason. He spent 2019 out of football, 2020 with Mississippi State, then reunited with Petrino at Missouri State, where he is entering his final season.
Telly Plummer
Position: Cornerback
UofL Career Stats: Three tackles (12 games)
Plummer was another player who was mostly a special teamer at Louisville. He did see some defensive action in 2018, playing two games in that area, then was exclusively special teams in 2019. He has spent the last three seasons at Chattanooga, and is entering his final season with the Mocs.
Marcus Riley
Position: Wide Receiver
UofL Career Stats: Three receptions for nine yards, three rushes for four yards (8 games)
Riley played just 32 offensive snaps as a true freshman for Louisville, then entered the portal after the season. He was been with Bethune-Cookman ever since, and has one season of college left.
Jordan Travis
Position: Quarterback
UofL Career Stats: 4-for-14 for 71 yards and one touchdown to one interception, eight rushes for 40 yards (3 games)
Imagine an alternate universe where Travis didn't transfer to Florida State after his true freshman campaign as a result of Jawon Pass and Malik Cunningham being ahead of him. In his fourth season with the Seminoles this past season, he finally had his breakout season after amassing 3,631 yards of offense and 31 touchdowns. Entering his final year in Tallahassee, Travis is regarded as a dark horse for the Heisman Trophy.
Trenell Troutman
Position: Cornerback/Safety
UofL Career Stats: 25 tackles (22 solo), 1.0 for loss, one forced fumble (23 games)
Out of the three years that Troutman spent at Louisville, only the 2019 saw him see any action on defense, as his 2018 and 2020 season all came on special teams. He spent the 2021 season, his final in college, at Alabama A&M.
(Photo of Yasir Abdullah: Jared Anderson - Louisville Report)
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