During his inaugural news conference, Pat Kelsey demonstrated that the new head coach of Louisville has the zeal and dedication required for a position of this prominence. Therefore, it is reasonable to assume that the athletes he chooses for his first UofL roster will possess comparable traits.
That description definitely applies to Terrence Edwards, who committed to Louisville on April 3. With the help of an inner drive, the James Madison transfer has improved remarkably each season while playing for the Dukes, ending his four years as the program’s Sun Belt Player of the Year.
Playing for Kelsey at a program with in tradition was a chance that Edwards wouldn’t pass up, especially with the new coaching staff at UofL making him their first priority.
“Those guys immediately reached out to me when coach PK got the job,” Edwards said to Cardinal Authority. “Coach PK is an amazing person, truly someone you can look up to and consider a father figure.” Additionally, two years ago when I was a student at James Madison, I used to play in the Colonial Athletic until the program moved to the Sun Belt.
As Edwards started looking into Kelsey, a couple moments turned out to be crucial in determining his final choice.
For information on Kelsey, Edwards went to a former player for College of Charleston who transferred to James Madison.
“I asked him about mentoring him and other related questions.and I asked him only general life questions rather than basketball-related ones, and he gave me excellent feedback, so it was obvious.”
Thomas Carr, the new assistant at UofL, and he hit it off right away, and the visit further solidified his commitment.
“Coach Carr, he reached out to me and he recruited me hard and my family,” Edwards stated. “He gave us the impression that they had a solid plan in place for me to play in the NBA the next season. As a result, their setup when I visited was unparalleled. Gorgeousness exists up there. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen, and knowing that coach PK was the head coach there made it obvious that I would attend Louisville.”
Another thing that makes Kelsey a wonderful fit for Edwards is the energy he exudes in his numerous public engagements.
Edwards declared, “I’m just an energy player.” “I create energy, I consume energy…When my energy and his energy come together, it will be unsurpassed.”
With the formation of the roster and Edwards looking forward to playing a part in bringing back the program and the energy that previously existed in the KFC Yum! Centre, excitement for the first year of Kelsey’s term is rapidly building.
“I think that fan base deserves to be back where they’ve been when I was a kid,” Edwards stated. “I grew up watching Louisville all the time because they were usually in the tournament, making it to the Final Four, winning national titles, and all that kind of things. We don’t take that for granted, at least not me. That’s a blessing in my opinion. I won’t take it for granted because it’s unquestionably a blessing for me.
It won’t be the Louisville we’ve been seeing for the past few years, I can assure you of that. That’s something I can guarantee. I can say this with certainty. I’ve never been unsuccessful. The coaches have never experienced defeat. Furthermore, the men we’re bringing in have never lost. And we will switch to winners if they were losing at their previous school. That’s what we carry out. That’s what I do, anyway. I enjoy helping others become better, so I’m excited to play with elite players when I arrive to Louisville. It will be fantastic. When I play with elite players, I believe my skills will improve tenfold and that the experience will be extremely enjoyable.”
This season, Edwards had 36 appearances for James Madison, averaging 17.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game while shooting 34.3 percent from three-point range.
The 6-foot-6, 190-pound wing out of Atlanta won Sun Belt Player of the Year this season before leading the Dukes to an NCAA tournament bid. He had previously won Sun Belt Sixth Man of the Year in 2022–2023. In the NCAA Tournament’s second round, James Madison fell to Duke despite winning 32 games this season.
Throughout his career, Edwards participated in 117 games over four seasons at James Madison. Throughout his career, he grabbed 525 rebounds, 278 assists, and 111 steals in addition to scoring 1,414 points. During his tenure with the Dukes, he shot 46.2 percent from the field.
He hopes to get to Louisville sometime this summer.
