Louisville is adding a wrinkle to the reigning Heisman winner's game: The Cardinals will use Lamar Jackson under center in a number of sets this season.
The prolific pivot operated almost entirely out of the shotgun in his historic campaign, but head coach Bobby Petrino said Thursday that putting him under center will help the team and aid Jackson's preparation for the NFL.
"We felt like there are some things in our offense that we weren't able to execute at times last year or the year before that," Petrino said at ACC Media Days, according to Mark Blankenbaker of The Crunch Zone. "It's also to help him prepare for the next level. You know there's no doubt about that."
Jackson is eligible for the NFL draft after this season. With NFL quarterbacks operating from under center the majority of the time, added reps in the formation should help his draft stock.
It becomes more difficult to operate quarterback runs from under center, but Petrino calmed any fears that the new formation will make Jackson a passer only.
"We do have a philosophy at the University of Louisville that we call FTS, which means feed the studs. Obviously Lamar is one of our studs," Petrino said. "So don't think that we're not going to call quarterback run plays or zone read plays or option plays, because we're going to give him his opportunities to make big plays, and his opportunities to handle things that he did so well last year."
Jackson finished the 2016 season with 3,543 yards passing and an incredible 1,571 on the ground. He accounted for 51 total touchdowns and easily won the Heisman Trophy. It will be difficult to match those numbers in 2017, but Petrino's past success with quarterbacks should give him confidence in the move under center.
