Jeff Brohm far exceeded expectations in his first year as Louisville’s head football coach.
The Cardinals, who were projected to finish eighth in the conference standings, made the ACC championship game and spent time ranked among the top 15 teams in the country.
Exceeding expectations comes with a price, though. The bar is higher for Louisville as it enters the 2024 season.
After losing their final three games of the 2023 campaign, the Cardinals are motivated to resolve what they consider to be unfinished business. But what could — and should — that look like?
Here are five expectations for U of L in Year 2 under Brohm:
Get back to ACC championship game
On paper, Louisville’s toughest conference game this season will be at Clemson. That’s not to say there won’t be under-the-radar teams that perform better than expected. Still, the Cardinals should be even more talented this season. After losing the bulk of their offensive production, their transfer portal class ranks 13th nationally, according to 247Sports. Most of those players arrived in January and have had the spring to acclimate. Between the newcomers and returning talent, Louisville has enough to make another ACC championship game appearance.
Win at least nine games
Louisville’s 10-4 record in 2023 was only the seventh time in program history that it reached double-digit wins in a season. If the Cardinals can avoid potential trap games, they have a strong chance of hitting the mark again. At the very least, they should win nine games. Their home schedule is manageable with the toughest game being against Miami. Playing on the road will be tougher as U of L goes to Notre Dame, Clemson and Kentucky. The Cardinals’ combined record at the three schools is 17-30, but they beat the Fighting Irish at L&N Stadium last year. They also led the Wildcats for…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/jeff-brohm-raised-bar-louisville-091624802.html
Author : The Courier Journal
Publish date : 2024-06-05 09:16:24
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