Steve Jones

@stevejones_cj

After an up-and-down season in which the offensive line was often the shakiest part of the University of Louisville football team, there appears to be considerable optimism among the coaches and players that the more-experienced Cardinals will be better blockers up front in 2016.

Playing much of last year with two true freshman tackles, a redshirt freshman guard and a junior-college transfer guard who arrived on campus just before fall camp, U of L gave up the most sack yardage of any team in the FBS and was No. 119 in average tackles per loss per game.

But after taking the lumps and gaining the knowledge of a season of major college ball, U of L all the sudden has a fairly experienced group up-front.

"We'll be much better on the O-line," coach Bobby Petrino said on the team's media day.

"This year we should be way better," tackle Geron Christian said.

"It’s like a 100 percent improvement from last year," guard Khalil Hunter said. "We’re great now."

The optimism likely springs from the way the Cards finished last season and the carryover to early practices this month.

After Pitt sacked U of L seven times and held the Cards to negative-1 yard rushing last November, Louisville bounced back to allow no sacks and rush for 314 yards in the regular-season finale against Kentucky. The Cards then allowed just one sack and ran for 307 yards against Texas A&M.

"What they did was they stayed the course," co-offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Chris Klenakis said. "They went out and got better every day. The last half of the season, it showed, and those last two games, they were very dominant."

The carryover was apparent in the spring game, when quarterback Lamar Jackson had plenty of time in the pocket to execute play-action fakes and deliver deep passes at will, finishing with eight touchdowns in barely a half. So far during the public practices of fall camp, the quarterback appears to have more time to throw and the offense has been more successful than it was at this time last year, when U of L's defense frequently found its way into the backfield.

"Last year we were real young," Christian said. "Just learning the plays on the run and everything. Now I feel like we’re more in sync. We’re moving faster instead of having to guess. We know the different blitzes, so everything is coming together. We actually know what we’re doing this year."

The Cards tried 10 different starters on the offensive line in 2015, but they could have more continuity this year. Christian, a sophomore who was named All-ACC honorable mention last year, is back at U of L's quick-side tackle, and sophomore Lukayus McNeil, a former four-star recruit whose toughness and athletic ability have been praised by the coaches, has moved out from guard to become the Cards' strongside tackle, which is said to be a more natural position for him.

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Kiola Mahoni returns at guard inside McNeil, and Khalil Hunter, a former junior-college All-American who saw minimal playing time last year but has been with the first team since spring ball, is positioned to be the other guard inside Christian. Three-year starter Tobijah Hughley, a former walk-on who directs the group, returns at center.

"It’s a heck of a lot of different (than last year)," Klenakis said. "You’re not reteaching every day. You’re able to pick up and continue your progressions and start the next day where you continued the day before."

Christian was the only offensive lineman to start every game last year, and the staff is high on his athletic ability. Petrino said the only other true freshman tackle he can recall starting during his coaching career was Auburn's Marcus McNeill in 2002. He was later named to two Pro Bowls during his NFL career.

Petrino said at this point last year, players such as Christian didn’t even know the plays. Now they do, and the focus this camp can be more on finer technical details like footwork and aiming points toward the defender.

“It’s way better than trying to think, ‘What do I do on this play?’” the coach said.

Petrino said Mahoni, who became a starter midway through 2015, and Hunter look poised to hit their stride in their second year in the program.

"They’re both some of the strongest guys on our team, both can really run," he said. "Usually what happens with junior-college players is you bring them in, and they don’t play as well as you’d think they would. Then they start playing better and have a great senior year, and you say, ‘Why didn’t I redshirt that guy?’ I think those are two guys who are really going to fit that bill to a ‘T’ because I like what they’re doing."

Petrino also expressed satisfaction this past week with the development of U of L's depth and backups along the O-line.

Kenny Thomas, the other true freshman to start much of last season, is a primary backup at guard and tackle right now while still competing for a starting job, and he figures to be a key piece of the Cards' O-line for years to come.

Chandler Jones, a redshirt freshman guard who didn’t arrive on campus in 2015 until training camp began, “is in way better shape than he was a year ago physically” and is running well.

“He’s going to be a real good football player before it’s over with,” Petrino said.

Junior-college transfer tackle Linwood Foy, a former college basketball prospect, has been impressive with his size and athletic ability, and Klenakis said he's improved his technique considerably in the first two weeks of camp.

Sophomore tackle Toriano Roundtree, who redshirted last year after transferring from junior college, has impressed Petrino with his toughness. Klenakis said Roundtree, who is U of L's tallest player at 6-6, has added 35 pounds and is up to 300 since his arrival last year while remaining lean and athletic.

Petrino said sophomore tackle Danny Burns, a former highly regarded recruit whose name has been barely mentioned the last two seasons, has changed his physique and is leaner and faster than when he arrived in 2014. Petrino said Burns reminds him of departed senior Aaron Epps in that he has taken longer than some others to get physically ready to play. Epps saw minimal playing time as an underclassman but became a major contributor his last two years.

Petrino said walk-ons and St. Xavier High School products Nathan Scheler, a backup center, and Tyler Haycraft have promising futures, and true freshman Robbie Bell has drawn positive reviews for his quick grasp of the center position.

The optimism about the O-line in camp has the Cards feeling motivated to flip last year's script.

"People downed us, doubted us," Hunter said. "I feel like we’ve got something to prove now."