Louisville Football: Top 5 breakout candidates for 2017
By Ryan McNeill
Louisville football had a breakout star emerge in 2016 with Heisman Trophy with eventual Heisman Trophy-winning QB Lamar Jackson, but who could break out in 2017?
Everybody knows Lamar Jackson after his memorable Heisman-winning season, but Jackson isn’t the only Cardinal who will be making highlight plays this season.
The team is looking to take another step forward under Bobby Petrino and a number of guys will need to step up in order for that to happen.
Here’s a list of five Louisville Cardinals poised for breakout seasons in 2017.
Lamar Jackson can’t catch his own touchdown passes, right? Last season Louisville’s top three leaders in receiving yards were seniors, so the next guy on the list, Jaylen Smith, is poised for a monster season as Jackson’s primary target.
Smith played in all 13 games for Louisville last season and averaged 22.2 yards per catch and racked up 599 yards receiving. Not bad for a fourth option behind three senior receivers.
A big reason why Smith had as many receiving yards as he did has he had three catches for more than 50 yards last season.
It’s worth noting that Smith made a big jump from his freshman to sophomore season. In his freshman season, he had 376 yards receiving and averaged 13 yards per catch.
If Smith is able to make the jump to being a number one receiver, it bodes well for his chances of making the jump to the NFL once he’s done playing college football. With an elite quarterback and the chance to play in the NFL, Smith has a lot to prove this season. I’d bet on him coming through with a monster season.