Luke Kandra

Luke Kandra is an American professional football guard. He played college football for the Louisville Cardinals and Cincinnati Bearcats.

Early life

Kandra is from Cincinnati, Ohio. He grew up playing football as a quarterback before switching to guard by the time he attended Elder High School in Cincinnati. As a junior, he was selected second-team all-district. He was then named All-Ohio and helped his team compile a record of 12–3 in his senior year, with Elder finishing as the runner-up at the Division I state championship. A three-star prospect and one of the top-50 recruits in Ohio, he committed to play college football for the Louisville Cardinals.

Kandra redshirted as a freshman at Louisville in 2020. He then appeared in 21 games for Louisville from 2021 to 2022, mainly on special teams, also appearing in two games as a starter during the 2022 season. He transferred to the Cincinnati Bearcats in 2023. That year, he was ranked by Pro Football Focus as the best offensive lineman on the team, with Kandra starting all 12 games and being named first-team All-Big 12 Conference and second-team All-American by the Walter Camp Foundation. As a senior in 2024, he was rated the best right guard in the conference by PFF for a second consecutive year, being selected first-team All-Big 12 and second-team All-American while starting 12 games. He did not allow a single sack in his last year. At the conclusion of his collegiate career, he was invited to the NFL Scouting Combine, where he led all participants in the bench press.

On May 8, 2025, Kandra signed with the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted [free agent] after going unselected in the 2025 NFL draft. He was waived on August 25.