As the Washington Huskies get set to take on the Louisville Cardinals in the 2024 Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl, it seems like it’ll be pretty important for UW to find a way to account for Louisville defensive back Tamarion McDonald, who has been a force for the Cardinals this season.
All throughout the year, McDonald has proven that he can be a versatile safety as well as a key playmaker who can impact the game in a few different ways. So far this season, McDonald has racked up a total of 52 combined tackles. That happens to include 3.5 tackles for loss and a couple of sacks.
And, well, it’s always fun to see a safety get involved in pressuring the quarterback until it’s your favorite team’s quarterback that is getting pressured by said safety. Unfortunately, that will likely be the case in El Paso as Demond Williams Jr., Brennan Carroll, and Jedd Fisch work to scheme around McDonald’s presence in Louisville’s secondary.
Washington Huskies will need to account for Tamarion McDonald in the Louisville Cardinals secondary during the 2024 Sun Bowl
All of this becomes even more important as Williams will be making what is just his second collegiate start ever in the Sun Bowl against Louisville. It’s not like he has an abundance of experience here. So, accounting for key playmakers like McDonald is a pretty big deal.
With some of the other members of the Cardinals not playing in the 2024 Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl, McDonald will likely have an even more important role for the Cardinals defense. There’s a good chance he serves Louisville as a pretty important leader as well.
And given Williams’ athleticism and ability to run the ball, expect to see a bit of a cat and mouse game as McDonald is used to either pressure or contain Washington’s young quarterback throughout the game.