Lamar Jackson is one of the NFL's biggest stars, but he's already a legend at Louisville. At just 24 years old, Jackson will be immortalized with a statue in front of Cardinal Stadium.
Louisville athletic director Vince Tyra made the announcement during a radio appearance on 93.9 WLCL-FM’s “The Deener Show.”
It seems Jackson is pretty emotional about the news.
The statue will be placed at the main entrance to the stadium, right next to that of Baltimore Colts icon and former Louisville quarterback Johnny Unitas, who played there from 1951 to 1954.
Jackson was under recruited coming out of high school and some other programs wanted him to switch positions. Louisville was the first major school to pledge that they wanted him strictly as a quarterback, so he chose the Cardinals.
Jackson rewarded them, becoming the first player in school history to win the Heisman Trophy in 2016 after throwing for 3,543 yards and 30 touchdowns while also running for 1,571 yards and 21 more scores. He followed it up with a very similar junior season before leaving for the NFL.
"It was my first home coming out of high school, the first city to show me some love out of state, and it's always a family when I come back," Jackson said in 2019 when he made an appearance in Louisville for the Paul Hornung Awards.
Louisville also built a football museum and high-rise dormitory in Unitas' honor. Is that up next for Jackson?
