Safeties Devin Neal, Cam'Ron Kelly Embracing 'Next Man Up' Mentality for Louisville

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - When dissecting the Louisville football program's roster on the defensive side of the ball over the offseason, it was easy to get excited about what they had in the secondary, especially at safety. With starters M.J. Griffin and Josh Minkins returning, and transfers Devin Neal and Cam'Ron Kelly being added, you could have made a case that the Cardinals had a top-five safety room in the ACC heading into the 2023 season.

However, the injury bug came down hard on this position group before a snap was even played. Griffin, one of Louisville's best defenders and NFL prospects, suffered a lower leg injury in fall camp and is expected to miss the entire season. D'Angelo Hutchinson also suffered an injury in fall camp, and is expected to be out “for an extended period of time.”

Once the season started, the depth at safety was tested once again. Minkins suffered - and played through - a hamstring injury in the season-opener vs. Georgia Tech, then was held out for the home opener vs. Murray State.

With Minkins' status still in question for the Cardinals' upcoming matchup vs. Indiana, it's possible that Neal and Kelly - the only other two scholarship safeties on the roster - will be the only safeties available, period against the Hoosiers. Guys like Benjamin Perry, Gilbert Frierson and Antonio Watts, who primarily play at the STAR position in this defensive system, could be used on the backend, but it's still a massive hit to Louisville's depth at safety.

It's times like this where the "next man up" mentality and is more than just a saying or a rallying cry, and is something that coaches need players to lean on so that their unit isn't perceived as a weak spot. Fortunately, both Neal and Kelly have fully embraced this mantra.

"We take a lot of pride in that, because the way (co-defensive coordinator and secondary) coach (Ron) English coaches every safety, we always assume 'next man up,'" Neal said after Louisville's win over Murray State last Thursday. "We need every man available in the room. When he's coaching one person, you got to take notes as if they're the next man up at all three safety spots."

Both players joined the program this past offseason, with Neal transferring from Baylor before spring ball and Kelly doing so from North Carolina ahead of fall camp. Each player has a plethora of on-field experience, with Neal spending three seasons with the Bears and Kelly four seasons with the Tar Heels.

The duo was also very productive at their previous stops. Neal logged 41 total tackles (31 solo), 2.0 tackles for loss, a sack, two interceptions, a forced fumble and a pass breakup last season; while Kelly collected 49 tackles (30 solo), an interception, a pass break up and assisted on a tackle for loss

Ironically, injuries also hampered these two once they arrived, with Neal missing all of spring with an undisclosed injury and Kelly dealing with a hamstring issue in the fall. Fortunately, neither let these injuries get in the way, and they continued to learn what they could in their adjustment to English's 4-2-5 defensive scheme.

"Coming into the spring, initially, I was trying to get the hang of the new system and just understand it," Neal said. "I felt like I got adjusted to it fine pretty early, and once (Griffin's) injury happened, people were saying next man up. I feel like I started to take a big step forward, just do what I needed to do, and just try to bring the intensity every day if possible."

Neal assumed Griffin's spot in the starting lineup during Louisville's first two games of the season, and so far, has performed well for the Cardinals. He has the second-most tackles on the team with nine, and logged both an interception and fumble recovery against Murray State.

"I think Devin Neal plays extremely hard," head coach Jeff Brohm said in his weekly press conference earlier this week. "He can tackle. He's played a lot of football in the past. He’ll give us everything he’s got."

As for Kelly, he came off the bench for the opener vs. Georgia Tech, but was elevated to starter in place of Minkins for the Murray State game. He has collected four tackles in his two appearances thus far, and while his play has caught Brohm's eye on a few occasions, Brohm also believes a deeper understanding of the system can help elevate Kelly.

"I think Cam'Ron Kelly did some really good things," Brohm said. "There were a couple of times we'd like for him to trigger faster on certain calls we have, so we got to continue to work through that. He had a great week at practice last week. Anytime we have a new system, it takes him a little while to get going, and he didn’t get here until after the spring. So we have to continue to speed up that process."

While the play from either Kelly or Neal hasn't been perfect, Brohm has liked what he has seen out of them from a preparation standpoint, and reiterated the need for both to play well moving forward. He commends both English and cornerbacks coach Steve Ellis for helping the duo come along since they joined the program.

"They had a really good week of practice, and we needed them to play well," Brohm said after the Murray State game. "The backups behind them don’t have much experience, so they stepped up, did a good job. They’re going to need to continue to play well in order to for us to win. They basically need to quarterback the defense and get us lined up back there and help prevent big plays and try to make some big plays.

"I just thought that they did a really good job, and I think it’s through great preparation all week. Coach English and coach Ellis did a great job with them getting them ready, and we’ve just got to continue to work through that. But I thought they played very well.”

Neal and Kelly, as well as the rest of the Cardinals, will return to the gridirion this weekend when Louisville takes on Indiana at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind. Kickoff is set for Saturday, Sept. 16 at 12:00 p.m. EST.

(Photo of Devin Neal, Jarvis Brownlee: Jared Anderson - Louisville Report)

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