Jeff Brohm’s offense hit a major roadblock after Isaac Brown announced his departure to the transfer portal. However, the Cardinals’ luck swung back as Brown announced his decision to stay for the 2026 season. Meanwhile, Louisville also landed a former Boston College offensive guard, turning their uncertainties into a double win.

Eryx Daugherty comes with two years of eligibility remaining. The OL had a dominant season at left guard, allowing only one sack. Daugherty has shown immense growth this year, having played his first full season in the offense after switching from the D-line last year. Starting in 10 games this season, he allowed only 12 pressures on 646 total blocking snaps. He brings a lot of talent and experience to one of the Cardinals’ biggest problem areas.

The OL, with his experience and impressive ability to resist pressure, is a big upgrade for the Cards. He gave up zero sacks on 742 total pass blocking snaps. He played only 3 games last season as an OL, and gave up only two pressures in 57 pass block snaps.

Louisville needs to fill their OL depth urgently as eight linemen graduate this year. But Jordan Church is the only experienced name on the chart, and has started in only 3 games this season. The O-line needs urgent reworking, having been one of the major flaws of the offense this season. They gave up 1.92 sacks per game and a total of 70 tackles for loss. The numbers are proof that the O-line was very porous, putting former QB1 Miller Moss at risk. He was the 6th-most sacked quarterback in the ACC with 23 sacks.

The biggest upside of having Eryx Daugherty is his run game. Louisville’s O-line issues resulted in a poor rushing attack, which averaged only 163.92 yards this season. This put more pressure on the passing attack and quarterback Miller Moss. The offensive line ended up taking away the edge that RBs Isaac Brown and Duke Watson provided. It couldn’t create the right gaps for the backs to rush ahead, and whenever they did, they were promptly hit by defenders.

Brown is one of the few players who helped carry the Louisville offense to the end, totaling 884 yards on the ground. Jeff Brohm was about to take a huge hit in the portal when Brown announced his plans to transfer. But only days later, much to the head coach’s relief, the RB announced his decision to come back for a third year at Louisville. Brown led the ACC in yards per attempt, despite having played only 9 games this season. The RB also earned All-America third team honors, and remains an elite player despite missing 4 games with a leg injury. Brown is pretty much Brohm’s saving grace, and the latter went the extra mile to keep him at Louisville.

Louisville made a big offer to retain Isaac Brown and his star production

Isaac Brown cited “loyalty” as the reason for his comeback. He’s spent 2 years here and has made a big enough impact to become a hero. Consecutive All-America honors, rushing for more than 1000 yards as a freshman – Louisville is housing a gem in Brown. That’s why the program also went big to keep the star RB off the market. According to his agent Richard Bailey, Louisville’s new offer was “definitely in the same range that [they] were hearing offers from big SEC schools, Big Ten schools.”

Brown immediately became a top prospect for bigger names than Louisville, like Texas and Notre Dame. If he hadn’t returned, the depth was looking very bleak at running back for Brohm after losing Duke Watson to the portal. That leaves Keyjuan Brown and Braxton Jennings as the leading returners, along with an inexperienced Jamarice Walder.

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That should bode well for Jeff Brohm, because Brown is setting a lofty goal for next season. He was looking at those schools because he had equally big plans for the 2026 season.

“Heisman for sure,” he said at a press conference after announcing his return. “Because I know I can do it. I really feel like I would’ve did it last year if I didn’t get hurt.”

He already led the ACC in yards per attempt despite missing 4 games with a lower leg injury. During the time he was active this season, Brown registered more than 100 rushing yards in 6 games. He’s already begun making his case for the prestigious award. Now, it’s on Jeff Brohm to at least get him into contention with how he designs the run game next year.