With Scott Satterfield leaving, the Louisville Cardinals didn’t know what the future was going to hold. Once the job opened up, they decided to call former quarterback and native son Jeff Brohm back to turn this program back around. Brohm spent the last six seasons as head coach for the Purdue Boilermakers. We saw what he could do in Purdue with his offensive scheme, now the question is can he do it with the Cardinals?
Offense
The Cardinals are bringing in graduate transfer Jack Plummer who spent some time as the quarterback for Brohm at Purdue earlier in his career. Plummer last year threw for 3,095 passing yards to go along with 21 passing touchdowns and 9 interceptions. In case Plummer doesn’t work out for Brohm, he still has Brock Domann who took over at starting quarterback for a period of time last season.
However, the focal point of this team’s offense should be their running game. They have a two-headed monster in Jawhar Jordan and Maurice Turner. These two running backs played a key part in last year’s offense and with a better passing game this season, these two should be even more effective. Louisville brought in some help on the offensive line as they brought Eric Miller over from Purdue and John Paul Flores from Virginia. Those two should help bolster the left side of this offensive line.
If Louisville can get their offense flourishing early on this season, they might have a shot at being a contender in the ACC.
Defense
This defensive unit a season ago was a great sight to see. However, only bringing back six starters from a season ago is a little worrying to me. They are transitioning from a 4-3 base defense to a 4-2-5. Louisville’s strong point on defense is their secondary which is led by returning safeties Josh Minkins and M.J. Griffin. They are super young at linebacker having one upperclassmen in that mix. Louisville’s front seven name to watch is none other than defensive end Ashton Gillotte. Gillotte is poised for a big junior season as he led the Cardinals in sacks a season ago. Having inexperienced linebackers will be a problem, but the veteran secondary will be able to help handle the load.
Win Total Prediction
The Cardinals win total is set at 8.5 wins right now on the FanDuel Sports Book. The over is set at +128 odds and the under is set at -158 odds. I think the Cardinals have the potential to win at least eight games in 2023. They do avoid Florida State and Clemson which should help them out in the long haul. However, the Cardinals might not get over that eight win hump. I would lean the under, but the odds are too high to play for me in a future bet. So I am staying away as a whole, but I do think Louisville during the season will be a fun team to bet on from time to time.
Game Schedule Predictions
Loss at Georgia Tech (0-1)
Blowout Win vs Murray State (1-1)
Win at Indiana (2-1)
Win vs Boston College (3-1)
Close Win at NC State (4-1)
Loss vs Notre Dame (4-2)
Win at Pittsburgh (5-2)
Loss vs Duke (5-3)
Win vs Virginia Tech (6-3)
Win vs Virginia (7-3)
Loss at Miami (7-4)
Loss vs Kentucky (7-5)