Louisville DE Adonijah Green Named a 2026 NFL Draft Underclassman to Watch

Originally posted on Louisville Cardinals on SI
By Matthew McGavic | Last updated Jun 9, 2025 1:00 PM ET

The Louisville football program is coming off of a 2024 season that resulted in three players hear their name called during the 2025 NFL Draft. Quarterback Tyler Shough and cornerback Quincy Riley are both heading to the New Orleans Saints, while defensive end Ashton Gillotte got picked up by the Kansas City Chiefs.

This time next year, we could be in line to see even more Cardinals get selected in the 2026 NFL Draft. Wide receivers Chris Bell and Caullin Lacy plus linebacker Stanquan Clark are prime candidates; while defensive linemen Rene Konga and Clev Lubin, as well safety JoJo Evans and quarterback Miller Moss also have a chance to get drafted.

Of course, the majority of those aforementioned players are heading into their final year in college, and only a few underclassmen for the Cards are generating 2026 NFL Draft buzz. That being said, the folks over at Pro Football Focus recently released their list of underclassmen to watch for next year's draft, and Louisville defensive end Adonijah Green cracked made the cut.

"Adonijah Green has played just 201 snaps in two years, but he showed promise with a 76.6 PFF pass-rush grade and 20.4% pass-rush win rate in 2024, with the latter ranking 17th among all college football edge defenders," PFF's Trevor Sikkema wrote.

After playing just four games in 2023, the 6-foot-6, 250-pound edge rusher took a step forward in 2024, becoming a part of the main defensive line rotation. Playing in all 13 games, he logged 12 tackles (eight solo), along with three for loss and a sack.

The Ellenwood, Ga. native was one of Louisville's highest-ranked signees in the Class of 2023. A four-star prospect, Green was ranked as the No. 192 player in the country, according to the 247Sports Composite. As a senior for Cedar Grove, he collected 69 tackles, 17 for loss and 11 sacks.