Louisville RB Isaac Brown questionable vs. Pitt

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -Louisville’s football program may be without one of their best offensive weapons when they take on Pitt this weekend.

Head coach Jeff Brohm announced Monday that while he was “hopeful” that true freshman running back Isaac Brown could suit up against Pitt this weekend after suffering a shoulder injury last weekend at Stanford, he could not say for certain that Brown would be able to.

“We’ll see how he progresses with his shoulder this week,” Brohm said. “We hope he can play, but I don’t know yet.”

Brown suffered his shoulder injury in the first quarter of Louisville’s 38-35 loss to Stanford last weekend. At halftime, Brohm told the television broadcast that he was “not sure when or if he would be back”, and that they would “just go with the elements”. Brown eventually returned to the locker room in the second half with a sling around his right arm.

Duke Watson, a fellow true freshman, took over the running back role against Stanford in the wake of Brown’s injury. He finished with 11 carries for 117 yards and three touchdowns. He became the first true freshman in Louisville history to rush for more than 100 yards and three touchdowns in one game.

Brown has burst onto the scene and is putting together a 2024 season worthy of Freshman All-American honors. The 6-foot-4, 190-pound all-around back has 803 yards and seven touchdowns on 108 rushes, along with 26 catches for 131 yards and a touchdown. His 7.4 yards per carry not only leads the ACC, but is No. 1 in the Power Four among running backs with 100 or more carries.

At the time of Brown’s commitment to Louisville in August 2022, he was ranked as the No. 8 running back in the class and No. 120 in the country, according to ESPN. He finished ranked No. 524 in the class of 2024 by the 247Sports Composite.

Brown had a productive senior season for Homestead (Fla.) HS. In just eight games tracked by MaxPreps, he ran for 1,084 yards with an average of 10.4 yards per carry, while also catching 16 passes for 260 yards. As a junior in 2023, he rushed for 650 yards and 10 touchdowns while recording 450 yards and six touchdowns through the air.

(Photo by Isaac Brown: Bob Kupbens – Imagn Images)

You can follow Louisville Cardinals On SI for future coverage by liking us on Facebook, Twitter/X and Instagram:

Facebook @LouisvilleOnSI
Twitter/X – @LouisvilleOnSI
Instagram @louisvilleonsi

You can also follow deputy editor Matthew McGavic on @Matt_McGavic on Twitter/X