North Hardin '26 DL Josiah Hope Commits to Louisville

Another top Class of 2026 prospect in the Commonwealth of Kentucky is opting to take their talents to the Louisville football program.

Radcliff (Ky.) North Hardin defensive lineman Josiah Hope announced Sunday that he has given his verbal pledge to the Cardinals. He chose Louisville over Arkansas, Auburn, Kentucky, LSU, Wisconsin and others.

First receiving an offer from Louisville back in March of 2024, Hope has taken a handful of visits to campus during his recruitment. Most recently, he was one of nine Class of 2026 prospectsthat took official visits to campus this weekend.

In fact, Hope is the second of those nine visitors to go ahead and pull the trigger. Lebanon (Oh.) HS tight end Nick Lautar also committed to Louisville earlier in the day.

The 6-foot-3, 300-pound defensive tackle ranks as high as No. 274 prospect in the Class of 2026, and the No. 2 prospect in Kentucky, behind only Owensboro (Ky.) running back and Louisville commit Evan Hampton, per On3's in-house rankings. The four-star recruit comes in as the No. 580 prospect nationally in the 247Sports Composite.

Hope was a force to be reckoned with as a junior for North Hardin this past season, logging 61 tackle, 19 for loss, seven sacks and two forced fumbles. He helped the Trojans go 8-5, with an appearance in the second round of the KHSAA Class 6A playoffs.

Louisville is now up to a 16-man 2026 recruiting class with Hope's commitment, which ranks as the No. 17 class in the nation, per247Sports. Per the 247Sports Composite, four of the top five prospects in Kentucky, as well as seven of the top 13, have committed to the Cards.

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