Offensive Line Returners Give Louisville Experience & Interior Strength

With Louisville returning all of their interior offensive linemen as well as their "sixth-man", offensive coordinator Dwayne Ledford believes the experience they bring will give the Cards an advantage up front.

The University of Louisville football program might have lost two starters on the offensive line in the offseason, but offensive coordinator Dwayne Ledford is still very optimistic about the unit as a whole.

Returning for the upcoming 2020 season is every piece of the Cardinals' interior of the line: guards Caleb Chandler & Robbie Ball and center Cole Bentley. Ledford believes that bringing back this core group of lineman will give them a distinct advantage.

"You hear people talk about all the time that if you're gonna be good, be good through the middle and build it out," Ledford said in a teleconference with reporters Monday. "You got guys that have a lot of game reps with one another."

Louisville lost both starting tackles from a season ago in junior Mekhi Becton and senior Tyler Haycraft. Becton opted to declare for the 2020 NFL Draft and was chosen with the No. 11 overall pick by the New York Jets. Haycraft was lost to graduation, and later signed a UDFA deal with the New York Giants.

While Becton & Haycraft were integral parts to Louisville's success up front, the three returning starters have plenty of experience amongst them. Chandler is a redshirt junior, and both Bentley & Bell are heading into their final year of college eligibility.

Ledford is also high on junior Adonis Boone and the experience he brings. Last season Boone served as Louisville's "sixth-man" on the offensive line, getting reps at both guard positions and serving as the primary backup to Becton at left tackle.

"(Boone) got a lot of meaningful snaps, and not just the games he stepped in for Mekhi," Ledford said. "Those game reps - it's hard to duplicate in practice. When we look at it, we've got four guys back that have a lot of experience."

When you couple the demeanor that the group holds as it pertains to their work ethic, Ledford notes that they were much more cohesive during spring practice back in March.

"It was very, very good to see," he said. "It's fun to be around and fun to witness."

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