University of Louisville football coach Jeff Brohm knew after spring practice that he would have to address the offensive line in the transfer portal, and is exactly the route that the first-year coach went when adding depth to the offensive line.
Brohm signed five additional players out of the transfer portal to add to the return of three starters in Renato Brown, Bryan Hudson and Michael Gonzalez. The staff went out and inked Eric Miller (Purdue), Willie Tyler (Rutgers), Vincent Lumia (Duquesne), Lance Robinson and Trevone Sylvester (Houston) to add to the signing of John Paul Flores (Virginia) from the winter.
A former Purdue transfer, Miller is familiar with Brohm’s offense after spending the last four years at Purdue, including starting all 14 games last season and leading the Boilermakers to the Big Ten title game.
“I am very familiar with coach Brohm’s system. It’s very complicated but it’s a great system to play in. He’s a great offensive coach and a fun offense to play in. It helped me a lot this summer. I knew the terminology to I have been able to help my teammates.
One other area of familiarity for Miller is UofL starting quarterback Jack Plummer. The two both played at Purdue and were roommates during their time. “He’s a great leader,” Miller said of Plummer. “The guys respond to him. He can make every throw in this offense and his knowledge of this offense is extremely helpful. He has all the physical tools to make all the throws you need to make on the field.”
Miller has stepped into a starting spot during so far through the first week of practice. The Indiana native understands that he’s far ahead of the new players because of the time he spent in Purdue’s offense, but the first-year player likes where the offensive line is after five practices.
“It’s one day at a time and one period at a time,” Miller said. “We have a lot of new guys out there, so it taken some time to get the guys comfortable. They are learning and getting better each day. I’m pleased where we are right now but still having a lot of work to do to get where we want to go as a unit. It’s coming along but we need to continue to get better.”
“I think the offensive line is getting comfortable,” offensive line coach Richard Owens said. “I think competition is good for us. The guys know they have to compete each and every day out on the field. We added a lot this summer, so it’s taken these guys a little time to get acclimated to what we are doing, but it continues to get better.”
One piece that hasn’t needed time to get familiar with the offense is center Bryan Hudson.
Despite not being in the system before, Hudson has been the leader of this unit. Referred to as a traffic cop out there by his teammates. Hudson, a preseason All-ACC performer, started all 13 games last season and is one of the top centers in the country heading into his final season.
As the center, Hudson’s teammates look to him to make the calls and get the offense into the right play or make the right call to make sure everyone is on the same page in this very complex offense.
“He’s been in the fire, and he’s been in the mix,” Owens said. “He has seen a lot of moving parts put there. Communication is the key and Bryan does a great job communicating. We need to over communicate at times. We have to be on the same page, and Bryan has done a great job of that.”
While most of the focus has been on all the senior transfers, Owens likes the development of freshman Joe Crocker after one week.
“I’ve been impressed with Joe Crocker,” Owens said. “He’s come along in the first week. I like his work ethic. He’s come along and I like his potential.”
The Cardinals return to the practice field on Tuesday morning at 9:45 a.m.
Notables:
- The New York Giants, New York Jets and Denver Broncos attended practice today.
- Jimmy Calloway leaped over a defender for one of the best catches of the day, while Cataurus Hicks also made a leaping acrobatic reception over a defender.
- Jamari Thrash continues to excel each and every day of fall camp.
- Eric Miller has been working at right tackle and understands Jeff Brohm’s system.
- The wide receivers and defensive backs went through a tackling circuit midway through practice.
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