Louisville got a rare recruiting victory from a rising prospect from out in the state, Sunday when Belfry, KY offensive lineman Cole Bentley committed to the Cardinals.
Louisville reversed two negative trends on the recruiting trail on Sunday. First, the offensive line recruiting that has worried many and at times driven Louisville to comb the junior college ranks and second, the recruiting in-state outside of Jefferson County that perennially a challenge, were both answered when Belfry, KY offensive line prospect Cole Bentley (6'4, 290) picked Louisville. Like a lot of kids out in eastern Kentucky, Bentley is a late rising prospect who listed offers from Cincinnati, Colorado State, Georgia Tech, Marshall, Purdue, and Virginia.
A composite three-star prospect according to 247Sports, Bentley likely projects at guard for Louisville. He's currently a huge, blocking tight end in a tight, option style high school offense. You can watch a video of Bentley below.
Bentley looks like a quintessential underrated Petrino-style offensive lineman. We can all rattle off the names like Quarterman, Wood, Breno, etc. With Kiola Mahoni heading into his senior season at weak guard, Bentley could very well push for playing time right away if he continues to develop as many expect.
After missing on several offensive line prospects in the class of 2016, Louisville has gotten to work on adding offensive line depth. Linwood Foy, another prospect who garnered increased attention from major programs signed late, Nevada prospect Poutasi Poutasi, a strong run blocking lineman, and now Bentley, has Louisville in solid shape along the offensive line for 2017 and beyond.
Adding to the drama of getting Bentley is the insistence by all that it be publicly known Kentucky did not offer him. I am told the Kentucky staff is focused on the tackle position but that many who cover the team think it's a mistake to not offer Bentley. One dear friend of mine that covers Kentucky professionally and that I think very highly of when it comes to football especially, told me he loves Bentley. Described him as "tougher than woodpecker lips". I think we'll all take that. If Bentley develops like the Louisville coaches seem to believe he will, I'm sure fans will never bring this up in debates across the aisle.
