Gasparato Pleased With Coachability of Louisville's Safeties

A new position coach for Louisville, surrounded by a plethora of newcomers in his position group, safeties coach Greg Gasparato has been pleased with his guys' willingness to work and be coached.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Greg Gasparato finds himself in somewhat of an interesting situation. Coming over from Army West Point earlier this offseason, he is one of four new position coaches on staff for the Louisville football program, taking over as the Cardinals' new safeties coach.

Of course, switching jobs is nothing new in college football, or collegiate athletics in general. What makes it intriguing from Gasparato's standpoint is the amount of fellow newcomers amongst the players in his room.

Heading into the 2021 season, Louisville sports just five scholarship safeties on the roster: Qwynnterrio Cole, Kenderick Duncan, Shavarick Williams, Josh Minkins and Benjamin Perry. Out of those five, only Minkins has prior playing time with the Cardinals; as Cole, Duncan and Williams are transfers and Perry is a true freshman.

Even with so many new faces in the safety rooms, Gasparato has been pleased with how coachable his guys have been, and their willingness to cooperate with him and one another.

"I think they're all willing to work and willing to be coached," he said. "That's all you can ask from a coach's standpoint, is guys that are willing to take coaching, and listen, and learn, and understand that it's hard to go into any scheme and master it day one."

Since officially joining the program back in February, Gasparato has been patient with the installation of his scheme. It started with the basics such as calls and splits, then gradually moved to split and motion adjustments.

"They've done a good job understanding it, and they've done a really good job just coaching each other," he said. "They're in there all the time watching extra film. I've been really pleased with this group, and every practice you see something getting better and better and better."

Duncan and Cole, who each transferred in from Georgia Southern and Alcorn State, respectively, are the two who are expected to be the starters in the season opener vs. Ole Miss. Both came in with humble mindsets, not expecting to be handed starting roles because of experience at their previous stops, and have gradually won over the respect of their peers.

"They've got a lot of reps under their belt, they've been in big game situations, and they know how to win," Gasparato said. "As they've been here and earned the respect, they haven't been given anything since they've been here, but they've earned everything. That's been great for me to see, and the teammates have welcomed them with open arms."

With Minkins inching closer and closer to a return following an offseason injury, Perry continuing to make strides as a true freshman, and cornerback Chandler Jones cross-training at safety, Gasparato is optimistic about the back end for Louisville.

"I think we're going to continue to get better as we get more experienced and seeing things that we need to see," he said.

Louisville will kick off the 2021 season against Ole Miss in the annual Chick-Fil-A Kickoff Game, down at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga. Kickoff scheduled for Monday, Sept. 6 at 8:00 p.m. on ESPN.

(Photo of Josh Minkins via University of Louisville Athletics)

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