Cardinals sign 4-star defensive tackle

Louisville coach Charlie Strong told reporters that he had two spots left that the Cardinals would fill with the top late qualifiers he could find. The Louisville coaches landed a big fish Friday morning with the signing of four-star defensive tackle De'Antre Rhodes.

The Richmond, Va. native signed with Louisville Friday morning, marking the end of a two year recruiting battle that included more than two dozen BCS-level programs. Just before noon Friday morning Rhodes signed an agreement that means he is officially headed to Louisville.

He had signed with Virginia Tech last recruiting season before heading to Hargrave Military Academy to get his qualifications in order. Rhodes signed again with Virginia Tech on National Signing Day, but was given a release within the last few weeks and opened his recruiting process back up.

Strong and new assistant coach Mike Groh jumped on the opportunity to recruit Rhodes again, and brought the Virginia big man to campus earlier this week for an official visit. Rhodes, who was spotted at the Louisville-Notre Dame basketball game by CardinalSports.com staff, decided to make his commitment to Louisville official with a signing Friday morning.

Listed at 6-foot-2, 279-pounds coming out of Varina High School in Richmond, Va. in 2009, Rhodes appeared to be significantly bigger than that while on his visit to Louisville. He was listed at 6-3, 280 in the Rivals.com database as a prep school, and he may have picked up weight since then.

Rhodes, who is expected to enroll at Louisville this summer, can begin competing immediately for playing time. He'll have a full five years to play four seasons of eligibility just like a high school recruit. He was rated the No. 11 prep school prospect in the nation according to Rivals.com. He was the No. 3 prep school defensive tackle in the country.