M.J. Griffin, Louisville football starting safety, 'probably' out for season with injury

Louisville Courier Journal Louisville safety M. J. Griffin will "probably" be out for the 2023 season with a lower leg injury, Cardinals head coach Jeff Brohm announced Saturday after the team’s fall scrimmage.

Griffin played in all 13 games for U of L in 2022, replacing Kenderick Duncan as a starter in the final eight contests of the season. He totaled 45 tackles and two interceptions, capping off his redshirt sophomore campaign with three tackles and a forced fumble in the Cardinals' Fenway Bowl win over Cincinnati. Griffin, a projected starter this season, said the new defensive scheme had started to become second nature to him.

While it required him to be more patient in waiting for gaps to be open — something that's, admittedly, not easy for him — in June he acknowledged how it could benefit him in the future: "You kind of have to do it if you want to get paid,” he quipped. Louisville Cardinals safety M. J.

Griffin (26) leads the team to the field before the first quarter against the South Florida Bulls at Cardinal Stadium on Sept. 24, 2022 in Louisville, Ky. Brohm also said fellow defensive back D’Angelo Hutchinson will be out “for an extended period of time” with an undisclosed injury.

As a freshman last season, the Florida native played in all 13 games (totaling six tackles) and was primarily used on special teams. “That hurt the depth there a little bit,” Brohm said. With the absence of Griffin and Hutchinson, returning starter Josh Minkins will have an even bigger role as a leader in U of L's defensive backfield, with added experience from fellow returner Ben Perry along with transfer portal additions Storm Duck (North Carolina) and Devin Neal (Baylor), among others.

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