Competition is "very, very high" for Louisville's Third Starting Wide Receiver

While Justin Marshall is the presumptive favorite to land the majority of the reps at Louisville's third starting wide receiver position, plenty of others have put their talents on display through the preseason and given themselves a chance.

Heading into the upcoming 2020 season, the main talking points surrounding the Louisville football program have revolved around the offense, and for good reason. The Cardinals return eight of their starters from an offense that ranked amongst the top 30 in nation, as well as their three biggest playmakers.

Two of the three starters were on the offensive line, and replacements have been all but nailed down on the depth chart. As for the final starter on offense to be replaced, that would be the third wide receiver.

Louisville retained their top two receiver options in Tutu Atwell & Dez Fitzpatrick, but lost their third option in Seth Dawkins due to graduation. Ever since the end of the 2019 season, the staff has been working on pencilling in that spot on the depth chart.

The first and most obvious choice would be Justin Marshall. The redshirt junior saw action in ten games and only tallied six receptions for 135 yards, but both are good for third among returning receivers. Since the end of the season, Marshall has been dedicated to fine tuning the more minute aspects of his game.

"I'm just making sure I do the little things right," Marshall said in a teleconference following practice Thursday.

But just because he's the most obvious option to be the third wide receiver, doesn't mean he's going to be handed that position. Several newcomers and veterans are very much in the running for that spot.

Christian Fitzpatrick has put on display his agility despite being a bigger receiver, Jordan Watkins' speed has caught the eye of players and coaches alike, Braden Smith's versatility has been on full display since the spring.

"The competition is very, very high," Marshall said. "You got a lot of guys in the room who could potentially be starters, but it's all about a matter of timing and how everything fits with the scheme."

While a starter's spot is not promised for him, Marshall believes that his work up to this point has established himself as a prime candidate to be a starter.

"I feel like I just put myself in positions to showcase my ability every chance that I get," he said. "Whether that's working off the field or doing the things behind the scenes to make sure that I'm prepared when the spotlight is on me."

Louisville will return to the practice fields on Friday, and are set to kickoff the season against the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers at home on Saturday, Sept. 12 at 8:00pm on the ACC Network.

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