Commentary

No surprise Louisville making moves

Charlie Strong has deep ties in the state so expect Cards to continue to land Florida kids

Originally Published: December 20, 2010
By Craig Haubert | ESPN Recruiting

It isn't that shocking that Louisville coach Charlie Strong was able to go into Miami and snag a pair of ESPNU 150 players and former Miami commits in QB Teddy Bridgewater and WR Eli Rogers, who are teammates at Miami (Fla.) Northwestern. Starting with his 2010 class, he's made it known that he was going to have a strong presence in Florida and would eventually have Louisville recruiting as well as anyone in the Big East

Cardinals Flying High

Thanks to Charlie Strong's deep ties in the state, Louisville's top prospects are once again from the state of Florida.
• Louisville commits
• Who's considering Louisville

Looking back at last year's class, Louisville's top four commits were all from Florida and seven members of the class there from the state. He landed WR Michaelee Harris, a four-star player from Miami Northwestern, so he opened the gates at that school last year and that certainly played a part in being able to land Bridgewater and Rogers this year.

With those three players at Louisville now, it should only help strengthen Strong's and Louisville's footing at the school. Harris, Bridgewater and Rogers can bring attention to the Cardinals and that could cause Miami some troubles and create competition for Miami Northwestern prospects from a program the Hurricanes wouldn't expect to have to battle for kids in their backyard.

One other thing to remember is this also dates back to Strong's time at Florida as the defensive coordinator. His ties to the state were so strong, it was only a matter of time until it carried over at Louisville.

The Hurricanes, meanwhile, shouldn't be too shocked by this news. Of the players Miami lost after Randy Shannon was fired, Albert Louis-Jean is the most likely to come back. The Hurricanes are still a big draw, but new coach Al Golden is not a big name and he will likely need a little time to build relationships and and prove to South Florida prospects that he can get The U back on track. His name alone will not bring kids there. Craig Haubert is the recruiting coordinator for ESPN Recruiting and has more than a decade of coaching experience. Don't forget to follow him on Twitter.

Craig Haubert | email

RecruitingNation
  • National recruiting analyst and analyst for ESPNU
  • More than a decade of college and pro coaching experience.
  • Has been a position coach, strength coach, recruiting coodinator and director of football operations.

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