Louisville Surprises Lamar Jackson With News of Jersey Retirement

Louisville surprised Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson with news that the university will retire his No. 8 jersey when the Cardinals host Syracuse.

Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson thought he was sitting down for an interview with Louisville media when he was met with a surprise that made him "feel like I won the Heisman again."

Instead of local media, University of Louisville athletic director Vince Tyra and football coach Scott Satterfield showed up on the screen, informing Jackson that his No. 8 jersey will be retired on Nov. 13. 

He thought he was meeting with the media, but we had other plans...

The moment @Lj_era8 found out that his number is being retired.#GoCards x #L1C4 pic.twitter.com/LIw8XjWxGn

— Louisville Athletics (@GoCards) October 16, 2021

"I [thought] I was gonna come down here and do an interview," Jackson said after hearing the news. "[I thought] I'm comin' down here to talk to my people from the 'Ville. That was dope, man. That was crazy.

"I feel like I won the Heisman again."

In 2016, Jackson became the youngest player to ever win the Heisman at 19 years, 337 days old. A year later, he finished his three-season career at Louisville having set or tied more than 40 school records. Ultimately he finished with 9,043 passing yards, 4,132 rushing yards, 69 passing touchdowns and 50 rushing touchdowns.

Jackson was selected by the Ravens with the 32nd pick in the 2018 NFL draft and won the NFL MVP award the following year when he set the single-season rushing-yard record by a quarterback. 

Jackson will join Johnny Unitas as the only other Louisville player to have his number retired.