Kienholz Signs with the Cardinals
January 13, 2026 | Football
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Lincoln Kienholz, a transfer quarterback from Ohio State, has signed with the University of Louisville football program, UofL head coach Jeff Brohm announced.
Kienholz, a 6-foot-2, 215-pounder, played three seasons for the Buckeyes and arrives at Louisville with two seasons of collegiate eligibility remaining. Appearing in 10 career games, he completed 21-of-36 passes for 250 yards and one touchdown, while rushing 17 times for 68 yards and a pair of scores.
As a sophomore last season, Kienholz played in three games for the Buckeyes, completing 11-of-14 passes (78.6 percent) for 139 yards and one touchdown. He also rushed for 66 yards and scored two touchdowns.
In 2023, Kienholz relieved injured starter Devin Brown in the first half of the Goodyear Cotton Bowl against Missouri and completed six-of-17 passes for 86 yards.
A standout in the classroom, Kienholz earned OSU Scholar-Athlete recognition in 2023 and 2024, along with Academic All–Big Ten honors in 2024 and 2025.
Coming out of high school, Kienholz was ranked as the nation's No. 13 quarterback and the No. 172 overall player in the 2022 class according to 247Sports. He became just the second player from the state of South Dakota to sign with Ohio State.
As a senior, he completed 66 percent of his passes for 3,422 yards and 46 touchdowns, earning 11AA Player of the Year honors. He finished his career at T.F. Riggs with 9,100 passing yards and 104 touchdowns, becoming South Dakota high school football's all-time passing leader in 2022.
