The 6-foot-2, 305-pound lineman has been a vital yet often underappreciated member of Louisville’s defensive front over the past three seasons. Dawson is coming off a breakout collegiate campaign, posting career-highs in multiple categories, including 19 tackles, seven tackles for loss, and 4.0 sacks across 10 games with two starts.
Dawson joined Louisville as part of their 2020 recruiting class but saw limited playing time during his first two seasons. He emerged as a key rotational player during the 2022 and 2023 seasons, amassing 30 tackles, 7.0 tackles for loss, 5.0 sacks, one pass deflection, and a forced fumble over that period.
A native of Collierville, Tenn., Dawson wraps up his Louisville career with a total of 51 tackles, 14.0 tackles for loss, 9.0 sacks, one pass deflection, and two forced fumbles in 37 games. He becomes the 14th Louisville player to declare for the transfer portal since the conclusion of the regular season and the 16th overall. So far, the Cardinals have secured three commitments from players in the transfer portal. The NCAA’s 30-day winter transfer window opened on Monday, Dec. 9, and players have until Saturday, Dec. 28, to enter the portal under current NCAA guidelines.
Louisville finished the 2024 regular season with an 8-4 overall record and a 5-3 mark in ACC play under second-year head coach Jeff Brohm. The Cardinals will close out the season with a Sun Bowl matchup against Washington on New Year’s Eve.
McGavic, a 2016 graduate of the University of Louisville with a degree in Sport Administration, is a Louisville native. He has been covering the Cardinals since 2017, with a brief stint on the Georgia Tech beat in Atlanta, Ga.
Leave a Reply