CJ Avery Excited For Defensive Continuity

The Louisville Cardinals retain many of their defense contributors from a year ago, and has the same DC in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 2016. Inside linebacker CJ Avery couldn't be happier that everyone is on the same page in spring practice.

Halfway through the 2020 edition of Louisville Football's spring practice, senior inside linebacker CJ Avery has gone through the motions without having to worry about learning and adjusting to a completely new defensive playbook. Though that wasn't always the case.

Over the last few years, the defensive coordinator position for the University of Louisville football program had essentially been a revolving door. 

Following a three year run with Todd Grantham as the defensive play caller, he was replaced with Mississippi State's Peter Sirmon for the 2017 season. Former Notre Dame DC Brian VanGorder then took over the reigns in 2018, with Brian Brown then following new head coach Scott Satterfield from Appalachian State to Louisville in 2019 as a result of the coaching staff's mass exodus the year before.

Louisville had 4 different defensive coordinators grace the sidelines over a 4 year period, with the current redshirt defensive seniors on the team having been coached under all of them. Being a senior himself, Avery has personally experienced three of them.

Establishing any sort of continuity on the defensive side of the ball was all but a pipe dream. Until now. For the first time since 2016, the Cardinals' upcoming 2020 season will feature the same defensive coordinator in back-to-back years, with Brian Brown returning to the Derby City.

For all the players who have had to endure their fair share of scheme & terminology changes, it's a blessing for players like Avery to not have to start back from square one and just play football. 

“It’s amazing," he said following Friday's spring practice. "Man, I can't tell you how happy I was knowing that I wouldn’t have to learn a new playbook, new terminology and things like that. It's been really fun and I have a great grasp of the defense.”

Instead of having to learn a completely new defensive playbook, Avery says that the focus of spring practice this time around is perfecting all of the finer details. Now that the players have a more firm grasp of how the defense operates, Coach Brown has "expected us to know a lot [more]" and "just get better day by day with it."

As a result, the players are having a much smoother time applying what the coaches want from them in spring practice.

“It’s a lot easier," Avery said. "I’ve seen a lot of things in the game and I’m seeing the ins and outs. You get smarter day by day and learn something new every day. 

It also helps that the Cards retain most of their defense contributors from Coach Brian Brown's first year as the DC. Louisville is returning all but four of their top 20 tackles in 2019, with Khane Pass, Amonte Caban, G.G. Robinson and Boosie Whitlow the only ones not returning to Cardinal Stadium.

“It's tremendous for our defense because a lot of guys know what they're doing," Avery said. "There's no weak link in the defense. We just rely on each other and just get better every day.”

With there being defensive continuity both on the sidelines and on the gridiron, Avery says it allows him to be a more instinctual and efficient football player.

"The defense feels like we're flying around. [I'm playing] a lot faster," he said. "I think a football player that thinks a lot doesn't play as fast. If you know what you're doing, then you’re just playing and reacting.”

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