Injured Louisville Safety M.J. Griffin 'Way Ahead of Schedule' in Rehab
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Year one of the Jeff Brohm era of the the Louisville football program was noted for having an incredibly efficient defense. While Brohm is known for his prowess as an offensive coach, the Cardinals finished the 2023 season with the No. 1 red zone defense, No. 9 rushing defense, No. 10 third down defense, and No. 21 total defense.
All of this was accomplished in spite of the fact that Louisville was missing a crucial component of their secondary. During fall camp, starting safety M.J. Griffin - who was one of the Cards' top defenders in 2022 - suffered a lower leg injury and had to miss the entire 2023 season.
However, there is good news regarding Griffin's injury and his availability for 2024. While he will be limited in during spring ball, Brohm notes that Griffin is "way ahead of schedule" in his rehab, expects him to be back to "100 percent" in the summer.
"We're excited to get MJ back. ... He's close to being fully healthy," Brohm said. "We'll probably limit him throughout the spring, but by June he'll be 100 percent full speed. I think he's way ahead of schedule right now, and we're looking forward to getting him back."
The 6-foot-1, 210-pound defensive back played a key role in Louisville's defensive turnaround in 2022. The Temple transfer began that season playing almost exclusively on special teams over the first five games, but was elevated to starting free safety against Virginia when regular starter Kenderick Duncan was injured.
Griffin held this spot for the remainder of the season, and his elevation to starter played a big role in Louisville significantly cutting down the amount of big plays they were giving up. The Cardinals averaged 210.4 passing yards allowed per game before Griffin cracked the starting rotation, and averaged 188.6 afterwards.
Despite seeing meaningful defensive playing time in only eight of the 13 games, the Ypsilanti, Mich. native finished seventh on the team in tackles with 45, while also logging a pair of interceptions and a forced fumble in the process.
(Photo of M.J. Griffin: Jared Anderson - Louisville Report)
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