
There have never been times as good as these for Louisville football. They may never again be times as good as these for Louisville football. So long as one of college football's finest upstarts is doing good things on the field, it doesn't hurt to talk about those successes.
Louisville heads into 2007 as a likely top 10 team with a hotshot new coach in Steve Kragthorpe, arguably the nation's best quarterback contending for the Heisman Trophy and an outside shot at the national championship. They've been building towards this the past few years under Bobby Petrino, winning a BCS game last year before their coach bolted for the NFL. However, the
pieces are still in place for another championship run.
"We were just three points away last year," said Brohm, who missed two whole games and parts of another with a thumb injury. "This year, we need to stay focused and keep doing what we've been doing. I think we have a shot at the national title."
The Cardinals have had some good years since joining Division I in 1973 (10-1-1 in 1990 under Howard Schnellenberger, 11-2 in 2001 under John L. Smith), but nothing sustained like the run from 2003 to present.
If you
look at this link, there's a stat called "delta" which is simply points scored minus points allowed. Its a rough measure, but helps paint a picture of a team's combined dominance (or lack thereof) on both sides of the ball. Few seasons in the program's history can match the 9-3 effort in 2005 with a 236 point delta. Yet, it's just the third highest delta in the last three seasons. There has simply never been a run like this in Louisville history.
The payoff is that the Cardinals are not being laughed at as title contenders. More importantly, they're not laughing at themselves, either. From quarterback Brian Brohm's interview with Heisman Pundit at CSTV.com:
"Our expectations are high. Our ultimate goal is to be national champions."
And should Louisville get to that BCS title game, it is not a stretch to think that it will be because of some Heisman-worthy performances out of Brohm.
"It would mean a great deal to be considered for the Heisman," said Brohm. "It's the most coveted award in sports. But it all will come down to how good the team is."
Brohm has had some injury problems so far in his career, but if he stays healthy and has the kind of season of which he is capable, the Cardinals could be better than good.
They could be great.
They have some Big East competition with Rutgers, West Virginia and South Florida, but they're worth keeping an eye on if big-name favorites like USC and LSU falter. The talent is there on offense, and some new additions on defense should give them greater credibility on that side of the ball. All that's left is to play the games and find out.