The 2013 basketball schedule was released today and the one word that comes to mind is transition. Just like with the football schedule this season the basketball schedule is suffering from the transitional year and is a little on the soft side especially the non-conference portion. A soft basketball schedule is something that we haven’t seen in a long time and while I will miss some of those Big East battles I’m looking forward to the future ACC battles that will be on the schedule next year and this transition year for both football and basketball will be well worth it.

Coach Pitino: “I certainly don’t enjoy the transitional part of our conference affiliation, but this is the best scenario possible”

A few games stand out on the schedule for me. First being the most obvious and that’s the early season match-up with North Carolina in the Hall of Fame Classic. NC has had their share of troubles during the off season but you best believe that they will be a formidable foe when that ball is tipped in November. With the return of James Michael McAdoo and P.J. Hairston, along with a solid recruiting class in 2013, Roy Williams finally has depth back on his roster, and it appears the Hall of Fame coach has a contender.

The next obvious choice is the annual rivalry game with our old foe Kentucky. This years December battle with the Cats will feature the 2012 and 2013 National Champions. It will be somewhat of a rubber match of sorts between the last two champs of college basketball. The game will also feature programs with very different approaches to winning. The college basketball world will be watching to see if the team of grizzled veterans or the team of super freshman phenoms will rule the day. Rupp Arena will be rocking and this will be the most anticipated Battle of the Bluegrass in years.

Then comes the conference slate of games. This years conference games will feature old Metro, CUSA and Big East foes. Memphis, UCONN, and Cincy games stand out the most to me but you also can’t count out those games against Southern Methodist.

Last but certainly not least is Southern Methodist. They may not Jump out to everyone as a respectable opponent or national contender but boy are they ever. Larry Brown is a helluva coach and he has assembled a roster that can compete with any team in the American and the country. They return all five starters, had three transfers sitting out and signed one of the best shooting guards in the country in McDonald’s All-American Keith Frazier. This is one of those teams that can come out of nowhere this season and be the surprise of the college basketball season. This may turn out to be one of Louisville’s toughest opponents of the season.

Just glancing at the schedule today these were some of the things that stood out to me. And while it doesn’t appear to be the grueling slate of seasons past this is not as bad as most think it is. Our defending National Champion Cardinals will have their hands full once again and this schedule will turn out some instant classics just you wait and see.

When the Fan Day scrimmage was over today you could hear the Cardinal Nation chanting “two more weeks,” “two more weeks”. I think everyone is ready for the season to begin including the players. The guys looked sharp today going through their drills and stations. The first team offense took the field and ran some plays for about four minutes and they looked pretty good. The one guy who stood out all day was DeVante Parker. He was unstoppable all practice long and will be a TD machine this year. Also seen a lot of James Quick and think he will see some significant playing time this year. I also kept a close eye on the running backs and Senorise Perry looks really good and was not missing a beat. His cuts looked strong and that knee seems to be mended. Michael Dyer is a stick of dynamite and he will get plenty of reps this year you can quote me on that. The defensive guys looked solid and I noticed that coach Strong kept a close eye on this unit. They did get yelled at the most during the scrimmage. Terrell Floyd and Damian Copeland were held out of practice due to minor injuries; both are expected back soon.

I got some photos and some video during the starting offense’s four minutes on the field for your viewing pleasure. I had a great time watching these guys go at it on a Sunday afternoon. Take a minute and look at the photos and video and enjoy the sights and sounds of Fan Day 2013. Go Cards!

Wednesday night the 2nd open practice took place in front of over a thousand Cardinal fans. You can really tell that the fans have taken their excitement to the next level and the anticipation for football to begin has never been higher. The players looked to be relaxed and very business like as they went through their stations and you can tell those guys are ready for the season to begin also. Teddy Bridgewater didn’t seem like the buzz of the autograph stuff effected him tonight and was throwing some very crisp passes as he went through his reps. The receivers and running backs also seemed very focused.

With the second open practice in the books it will be time to close the gates off to the media and the public. It is now time for the real work to begin. We are about 3 weeks from the kickoff of the season and Coach Strong and his staff will start fine tuning their offense and defense in preparation for the first opponent. I know I enjoyed the chance to see the team and I can’t wait for that first Card March and game. Below is some of the photos I took of open practice #2. I also got some good video for those of you who couldn’t make it out this week. Enjoy!

Everyone knows that Coach Vance Bedford has a very unique personality. He is a spark-plug of emotion and tonight some of that personality was put on display as he had a very special teaching moment with Charles Gaines. You will want to see this video if you are a Coach Bedford fan.

Teddy Bridgewater and the offense get some reps.

More Offensive reps with the QB’s and the wide receivers.

Looking over the Cardinals football schedule I decided to pick the games that I thought would end up being the biggest of the season. I realize that every game on a college football schedule is very important. And this season those words could not be more true for this team. But there are games that stand alone for me.

-Louisville vs Kentucky, Sept. 14, 12:00 p.m. (ESPN) – The bitter banter has heated up this summer between UK and Louisville fans. Perhaps the “Year of the Cardinal” has made it hotter than ever. We have had twitter wars, Facebook wars, and even had a movie made, but now its time for the gridiron version of “The Battle of the Bluegrass” to take center stage. Both programs will be on display for the nation to watch on a Saturday afternoon. The build up for this game has been as big as ever. UK leads the all-time series 14-11, but Louisville has won the last two. Our Cards are the heavy favorites in this one and victory will be sweet. I can’t wait to yell Yahtzee every time we get in the end-zone that day. Its Louisville versus Kentucky and possibly the most important game on our schedule from the fan perspective.

-Rutgers at Louisville, Oct. 10, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN) – I don’t need to remind Cardinal fans about all the big games with these guys over the past few years. I still get a sick feeling in my stomach just thinking about that field goal kick in 2006. They have written stories about that game. And fast forward to that heroic performance by Teddy QB in the game last year. I wrote a story about that game. This is a game that has changed people’s lives on and off the field. It always seems to come down to big plays and big moments. This will be the last year Rutgers will be on the schedule as we both will go our separate ways after this season. It will be bitter sweet. It may also be déjà vu as they will have this one circled on their schedule and would love nothing more than to knock the Cardinal’s out of BCS title contention once again.

-Louisville at USF, Oct. 26, TBA – This rivalry has added some sparks in recent years. I think that both will be battling it out for the conference title this season. Both of these schools also have the best young coaches in college football with Charlie Strong and Willie Taggart. Coach Taggart will bring that blue collar type football mentality to South Florida and with the talent on that roster they will be a tough win on their home field. You can’t disregard the recruiting implications in this game either. Louisville has won the last two games in this series but this won’t be an easy one. It will be a great Friday night battle.

-Louisville at Cincinnati, Dec. 5, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN) – Forget being the biggest game on our schedule this season, this could be one of the biggest college football games period. Conference Title, BCS implications, and one last battle for The “Keg of Nails” will highlight this great Thursday night battle. U of L and UC have a football rivalry that has stretched over the span of 4 conferences from the Missouri Valley Conference, to Conference USA, the Big East and now the American. It is believed to be the oldest rivalry for the Louisville football team and the second oldest for UC. This game will be a fitting tribute to this great rivalry. There will be a lot of memories left on that field in Nippert Stadium and if its the last time we face our old foes from the north I hope it’s a win that I’ll have to remember.

-Alabama vs Louisville, Jan. 6th, TBA – The great thing about being a fan is that you can look ahead and you can make bold predictions. I really do think that the time is now for the Louisville football program. We have the team, the schedule sets up nicely and we are ranked high enough to make it into the national title game. Of course we will need some help from other teams in our conference as well as those ranked above us. But the stars will align and this will be the biggest game in the history of the Louisville football program. Anyone remember the last time they said we couldn’t win? Remember the last time we played Alabama in a Bowl game? I’ll bet they do…

Adidas Nations, the premier international grassroots basketball program is holding their event this weekend. Practices, pool play and college counselor games are being held August 2-4. The championships are played at Long Beach City College on Monday, August 5 and ESPNU will air four hours of coverage from the Adidas Nations event in Los Angeles. The network will show games from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. ET Monday.

Last year Peyton Siva, Wayne Blackshear and Gorgui Dieng were chosen to be counselors at the Adidas Nations Camp. This year Russ Smith, Montrezl Harrell and Chris Jones got the honor. There are 29 current U.S. college players, who are competing on four teams. The counselors are taught and put through drills by coaches and pro-type players. They also get to scrimmage a lot against other top players. The experience should help all three get better especially Jones who is already turning heads at the event.

Louisville commitments Shaqquan Aaron and JaQuan Lyle are also participating in the event with several Louisville recruiting targets.

The Cardinal targets on the Adidas Nations rosters include Trey Lyles, Myles Turner, and Jalen Johnson from the class of 2014. Stephen Zimmerman, Carlton Bragg, Tyler Dorsey, Jalen Coleman, Daniel Giddens, Josh Jackson, Jaylen Brown, and Perry Dozier Jr are among the prospects from the class of 2015.

Be sure to tune in on Monday to check out some of these guys.

Michael Dyer watch is officially over and the big time running back and National Championship MVP is a Cardinal. News started to come out in small leaks on Thursday afternoon then a tweet was sent out late Thursday night by USA Today Sports with a link of a source that says Dyer will report to Louisville next week.