Success does breed contempt and there hasn’t been a more successful college program in the nation than ours has been this past year. Folks are taking anything they can and trying to bring us down. I know you have heard the recent news about Chane Behanan, and man did folks run with the news when Louisville decided to stand by Coach Hurtt. And then we find out about a Mississippi man that made an attempt to extort money from the University Athletic Association. Back in April a 35-year-old Thomas E. Ray used the alias “Melinda White” and sent an email to Tom Jurich threatening to hurt the reputation of the association. This bozo claimed he had info on three Louisville players shaving points. Those players Gorgui Dieng, Russ Smith and Chane Behanan. Chane is a real kingpin these days.. Point shaving, gun smuggling, and prostitution.. LOL. Then the latest of these attempts to discredit the success of the University of Louisville is the rumor about Kevin Ware using a car of a supposed Louisville booster that he later got a speeding ticket in. But again this was fully investigated by the University’s compliance office and then turned over to the NCAA who also found no wrong doing.

Folks I make light of this, but there will be UK fans that you work with that can’t wait to ask you about Louisville shaving points, Chane having young prostitutes, and Kevin Ware driving booster’s cars. I fully expect Matt Jones to launch his own investigation and write a three page essay on his findings. Somehow it will all tie in together. Louisville is really the front for an organized mafia group (Corn Bread Mafia turned Cardinal Mafia) and Chane Behanan, and Clint Hurtt are all part of this. Russ Smith runs his part of the mafia back in New York and Gorgui has a gun connection in Nigeria… Kevin Ware got a speeding ticket trying to smuggle drugs over the county line. Or maybe it was moonshine.. The enemy or “RIVALs” as Coach Pitino called them last night are among us so be prepared for these crazy stories.

5 minutes after I publish this article and it begins..

Just remember Cardinal fans we have one of the best college athletic programs in the nation and just had one of the most successful seasons. Folks are gonna target that. And folks are gonna run with any rumor they can dig up. It’s just a price for success. I say bring it on.. And I can’t wait to see what happens after “The Year of the Cardinal” Part 2…

“Small people talk about other people”, “Average people talk about material things “, “great people talk about ideas”, “Cardinal Fans are planning their next trip to a championship game.” – The Beak

Tonight wasn’t one of the most exciting games of the year, but our Cards got the job done playing in front of a sparse crowd of disinterested UCONN fans winning the game that seemed to last forever 31-10. This marks the end of a series that has seen some of the strangest games ever played and tonight was no exception. I think I can speak on behalf of all Cardinal Nation and say that none of us will miss it. The Cardinals will end the series with a 6 to 4 advantage.

This wasn’t one of the best games that Louisville has played this season by any stretch of the imagination. They had trouble running the ball (81 yards) and the receivers probably dropped more passes than I’ve seen them drop in a long time. But this was the first game of the season with temperatures barely in the 30’s and that could have had an impact on the players. There were some good things that happened. Teddy Bridgewater takes a lot of heat for not walking on water sometimes and tonight was one of those occasions. He did throw for 288 yards with a touchdown and completed 21 of 37 passes. He has thrown 24 touchdown passes this season and has at least one scoring pass in 21 straight games. That’s the second longest streak among BCS-AQ Quarterbacks. The kid is completing almost 74 percent of his passes. I’m just amazed when people disregard what he means to this team, and his ability. I’m sure they’ll see what I mean next year when he’s gone. The defense looked good with three interceptions and a fumble recovery. Terell Floyd had a 17 yard interception for a touchdown, and Charles Gaines with a 7 yard touchdown off a blocked punt. With his 2.5 sacks tonight Defensive end Marcus Smith becomes the national sack leader with 10.5 on the season.

It seems like this Louisville football team is an easy target for people who love to be critical. These guys took a lot of heat tonight for winning a road game by 21 points. I didn’t hear that much when then #15 Michigan escaped with a 3 point win at UCONN a few weeks ago. Our Cards were facing an up hill battle from the glass half empty crowd from the start of this season. It didn’t matter what they did and it still doesn’t matter. I’ve said a million times that all the guys can do is win the games they have in front of them and tonight they did. They are going to a bowl game and are 8-1. Some may want more or expect more but that’s the reality. It could be a lot worse. We could have to wear bags on our heads like the UCONN folks did tonight. I’ve read several times tonight that big time programs give it all they got no matter the opponent. Well big time fan bases support their team no matter what. Let’s be big time Cardinal Nation…

Today the talk of the town especially in Miami and Louisville are the sanctions imposed by the NCAA. Tuesday morning they unveiled the findings of their investigation into Miami athletics and issued sanctions that are a very long time coming. Two and a half years later to be exact. Not exactly due process but we are talking about the NCAA here. An organization that has been bashed this past year for its poor judgment, unjust rulings on student athletes and other misdoings. Oh and did you know that the backbone of their case rest on the word of a cocaine sniffing, thieving, convict.

Tom Jurich talks Clint Hurtt

During their probe into the University of Miami’s misdoings they allegedly discovered that the now University of Louisville’s Defensive Line coach was receiving and providing impermissible benefits to recruits while he coached at Miami. They also allege that he wasn’t completely honest with them during their investigation. A lot of alleging… Today while handing out their punishment the NCAA leveled a two-year show-cause sanction on Hurtt which basically means that if he were to be hired by another university they would have to take it before a NCAA panel.

But he won’t be hired by another university because like he has time and time again Tom Jurich decided to stand by his coach and keep him at Louisville. But make no mistake about it Clint Hurtt doesn’t walk away without any type of punishment from this. Along with the NCAA sanctions Hurtt will also be punished by Louisville. These punishments include: being banned from any recruiting activity during the rest of this year and through the spring of 2014, freezing his compensation for two years, has to attend NCAA regional rules seminars in 2014 and 2015 at his own cost and will have a “zero tolerance” policy. If Clint Hurtt did do the things that the NCAA and others alleged he did 6 years ago then I think this is an appropriate response to those mistakes. Why ruin a guy’s life for mistakes he may or may not have made as a young coach in an environment where that type of behavior was par for the course?

Clint Hurtt Post-Practice Interview Today

(Video courtesy Howie Lindsey)

As you may know by now there are those among us who would dare question the decision made by Tom Jurich today. All of a sudden one of the best Athletic Directors in the country has forgot how to do his job, and the very same people who have bashed the NCAA for all of their stupid decisions over the past year now agree with them on the Clint Hurtt matter. And yes everyone is entitled to their opinions no matter how inconsistent they may be. How can anyone really be surprised by Tom Jurich standing behind his guy? How many times during his tenure have we seen him do this? Time and time again Tom Jurich has been loyal to those under his command. He is one of the most loyal leaders I’ve ever seen. And it’s that loyalty along with his ability to make the big decisions that has got him where he is today. I firmly stand behind Mr. Jurich with his decision to keep Clint Hurtt. And I applaud him for being so loyal in a world that has forgotten what the word means. Coaches all across America also heard the words loud and clear today. If you come to the University of Louisville, work hard; perform your job to the best of your abilities you will be backed by your boss. Loyalty First, Cards forever…

The Summer of Pitino concluded today as he took his spot among the greats in the Hall of Fame at Enshrinement ceremonies in Springfield, Mass. He was inducted by Hubie Brown and Dick Vitale in front of family, friends and colleagues. It is great to see another basketball coach represent the Louisville Cardinals while becoming a Hall of Fame member. There’s no doubt that Rick Pitino will be one of the greatest coaches we will ever see on a college basketball court. I know he made all of Kentucky proud today and I know we are all very lucky to have been a part of his great career.

You can watch Coach Pitino’s induction speech below:

The Cards came out today and they took care of business just like most expected they would beating EKU 44 to 7. The atmosphere in Papa Johns Cardinal Stadium was awesome as just over 53,000 fans showed up for the 12:00pm kickoff. It was the 5th largest crowd ever to watch a game. Pretty impressive numbers considering that it was against a FCS opponent. Teddy Ballgame threw for 397 yards and 4 touchdowns and DeVante Parker had 5 catches for 134 yards with 2 touchdowns. These two guys were the highlight of the day for the Cards offense but the the 5 headed monster known as the Cardinals running backs were held in check with only 79 yards. I said in my pregame post that this was probably the best defense that EKU has had in a long time and they showed it today by putting up a very respectable effort against the Cards. They have a gutsy bunch down in Richmond Kentucky and they have nothing to hang their heads about after today. They brought the game to the Cardinals and came to play.

The attitude in the Cardinals locker room after the game was one of discontent as both Charlie Strong and his players all felt like they could have been better today. The Kicking game gave up too much return yardage, the defense gave up a few first downs that should have been stopped, and the offensive line could have done a better job at controlling the line of scrimmage. All stuff that will provide some teaching moments to coach Strong and his staff this week as they prepare for the game with Kentucky. I think the looming rival game played a big part in the Cards performance today. I think they kept the offense simple not wanting to show much today and I do think the players were looking ahead. I know they say that doesn’t happen but I think it does.

A win is a win and the Cardinals are now one step closer to that undefeated season and possible National Title game. Below you can check out the sights and sounds of the Cardinals versus EKU.

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THE CARDS TAKE THE FIELD:

COACH CHARLIE STRONG AFTER THE GAME:

TEDDY AFTER THE GAME:

DEVANTE PARKER AFTER THE GAME:

GERALD CHRISTIAN AFTER THE GAME:

JAKE SMITH AFTER THE GAME:

One of the most anticipated seasons in the history of Louisville football kicked off today. As I was heading down I64 I don’t think I could have imagined just how much the Cardinal Nation was ready to see their football team play. When I got to my parking spot and started to walk around it became pretty clear then. You could feel the excitement in the air. At every tailgate spot I stopped it seemed as though fans had taken their excitement to another level. And I witnessed one of the most passionate Card Marches ever today. Folks lined up early to get their chance to wish the players good luck on their way to battle. From a fan standpoint Cardinal Nation really took a step up today. And at kickoff the second largest Papa Johns crowd ever were in their seats and ready to go. If a college football program is to be considered “Big Time” then the fans have to be “Big Time” and today they were.

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Another thing I noticed today was how many former UofL greats showed up in Louisville to cheer on the football team. I ran into several former Cardinal players as I was making my rounds. This is another sign of a football program making it to “Big Time” status. When you got guys coming back to cheer for the football team it says a lot about what’s going on in my opinion.

When the team came out for their pre game warm-ups they matched the level of intensity and excitement of the fans. I had never been to a regular season game and seen our football team more hyped, and focused. You could tell early on in the pre-game reps that Ohio was in for a long day. When our Cards came running out of that tunnel for game time it was on…

The last time Louisville and Ohio played was 54 years ago and on that day it was the Bobcats who were victorious in a 22 to 15 slobberknocker. But today the guys from Ohio suffered their worst loss ever under their current coach as they ran into a team on a mission. A team that is out to prove that “Big Time” football has arrived in Louisville. The Cards took control early today and never looked back. The defense stepped up big and shut down the Ohio big three of Tettleton, Blankenship, and Donte Foster. Turns out my prediction in my game preview was pretty accurate and losing those three starters on that offensive line really hurt them. A team that had averaged over 30 points a game was held to just 273 total yards and 7 points. Louisville’s James Burgess played a big part of that as he was a tackling machine and even forced a fumble. He was the defensive player of the game.

Ohio Coach Frank Solich: “I don’t think there is any question that they are a Top 10 team. They are the best team we have played since I’ve been at Ohio.”

Ohio QB Tettleton: “Give them a lot of credit. They have a really good defense.”

And the Louisville offense today was just awesome and as near to perfection as they could be in the opening game. Right out of that gate Teddy Ballgame was 9 for 9 on his first two drives for 122 yards, and hooked up with Damian Copeland for two 2 touchdowns. The onslaught would continue as Teddy would throw for four touchdowns in the first half. He would finish with five on the day.The key was his ability to connect on 3rd downs as he was 8 for 8 with 7 first downs and two touchdowns on third down. Again just as I had predicted in my game preview it was toss and catch all day long with Copeland, Parker, Clark, De La Cruz, and Christian against the Ohio D. Teddy said he felt “like a kid in a candy store” with all the weapons. “I just have to pick the flavor.” I was also happy to see Michaelee Harris get a catch. Hope it’s a sign that he could be a contributed later in the season. Our offensive line deserves a lot of credit as they controlled the line of scrimmage all day long. It appeared that losing six defensive starters was too much to overcome for the Bobcats. They replaced their entire defensive front this spring. The Louisville five headed monster of running backs also played their role in this big win. Dyer scored his first ever touchdown with he and Perry leading the way. Brown, Lamb, and Radcliff also got snaps. It’s just crazy to see this much depth at that positions. This is the deepest offense in the country. Was good to see Will Gardner come in to get the clean-up touchdown. The cards turned in the best offensive performance ever for Coach Strong with over 600 yards. There were a few penalties but most of those could be contributed to early season mistakes and Coach Strong didn’t seem too concerned about them after the game.

Coach Strong: “We felt like if we played well we could dominate that opponent. We have some things we can clean up.”

It was a great day in the history of the Cardinal football program. I’m just glad that I was there and could be a part of it. I do think it was a significant moment and one that I would summarize as “Big Time” football has arrived in Louisville. We will all look back on September 1st 2013 as a day when it all came together. Great fan support, great facilities, great atmosphere, and great execution by a great team. Go Cards!

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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!

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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!

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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…