How Chris Mack is going to make basketball fun again in Louisville

With college basketball viewership on the decline, Louisville has a chance to spark a lot of fan interest under Chris Mack.

College basketball is at a stand still. With the recent upward trend in NBA viewership after the inception of a crop of young stars, and the one-and-done rule in full affect, college basketball interest seems to be on a slight decline. Chris Mack could be the exception for Louisville.

Teams like Duke, Kentucky, and Kansas have been the talk of college basketball over the last decade. The modern day blue blood blueprint is to secure sure-fire NBA talent, and throw them into the college basketball fire. There’s no need to immerse oneself in the traditional “college experience” at blue blood schools. A few cupcake online classes, and a heavy dosage of college basketball fame for two semesters is all it takes to ready 5-star players for the NBA.

The system seems flawed, but for the “student” athletes and the universities alike, from the beginning, there’s an understanding of what both parties are getting out of it. A clear path to the league for the players, and a very promising chance at high-level success for the the team.

College basketball is straying further and further from it’s roots each season, particularly during the regular season- where viewership is even more down that the still-popular NCAA Tournament. The good news is that there are common themes that still exist that offer a glimmer of hope for the college hoops purists, as well as a chance for college basketball to resurface as a challenger for NBA popularity.

Schools like Villanova, Xavier, Gonzaga, and Nevada still offer what college basketball traditionalists grew to love about college basketball. But what the sport really needs is for a traditional blue blood to follow suit.

Enter the Louisville Cardinals and Chris Mack.

Louisville has long been inside, or right on the edge, of the upper echelon of college basketball programs. But unlike schools like North Carolina, Duke, Kentucky, UCLA, and Kansas, Louisville has never been a polarizing team. Sure, they have had polarizing coaches. Denny Crum and Rick Pitino are two of the greatest basketball minds to ever grace the sidelines. However, there has always been a lack of polarizing players and a shortage of insane fans to rise to the very top.

What Louisville has though is the respect of the college basketball world. And starting this year, the Cards may have what it takes to breathe some life into the college game.

So, what does it take to draw the attention of viewers that would not watch otherwise? The answer is not all that simple. However, there are a few key components that separate college basketball from the rest of the sports landscape.

Style of Play

We start here because a lot of what college basketball has lacked recently is the style and swagger that made it so popular beginning in the late 70’s and early 80’s.

The hustle, the pride, the playing for your team and not yourself, and the overall competitiveness of college basketball made it must-see TV if you were a sports fan. The Louisville teams of the 80’s are a perfect example of what people loved. The Cards played solid, fundamental basketball then, and they worked their asses off. They had legendary players, but the Louisville teams of the 80’s were never the most talented in the country.

What made the Cards teams of the past great were the hustle and grit just as much as the high-flying dunks. The Cards were all-around entertaining. After four final fours and two national titles in six seasons, the Chicago Tribune dubbed them the team of the 80’s.

It was at this same time that college basketball popularity was on the rise. The fall of the Wooden dynasty at UCLA, and the rise of new contenders like Louisville, Duke, North Carolina, and Indiana were part of what led to an increase in popularity. The game was getting better and more competitive, and in turn became more fun.

Louisville’s style of play in 2018-19 and going forward may remind many of some teams of the 80’s in regards to hustle and energy. It is difficult to gauge just how much of Chris Mack’s style of play will show on the court this coming season, but going forward, Mack’s teams figure to take the same form that they took in his time at Xavier.

Tough, brash, confident, and constant hustle are characteristics that define Mack’s past teams. It doesn’t seem like the Cards are going to stop that trend, which can only be of the benefit of the program.

This is not to say that Louisville hasn’t played with heart and toughness in the past- but Mack’s teams seem to take it to a different level. Add confidence to the equation, and you have a program that will be easy to root for year in and out.

Fan and Social Media Engagement

In a day and age where student and fan engagement is crucial to college athletics, Louisville has been seriously lacking for years.

We are seeing the repercussions of a coach’s refusal to interact with players and fans on social media with the Louisville football program right now. Bobby Petrino’s official account blocks anyone who so much as mentions his name.

We are seeing the repercussions of a coach’s refusal to interact with players and fans on social media with the Louisville football program right now. Bobby Petrino’s official account blocks anyone who so much as mentions his name.

Which may or may not be equally as bad as Rick Pitino’s complete social media bans during the season. Sure, social media can cause PR issues for a program, but not engaging with student athletes and perspective recruits and speaking on their level is a complete missed opportunity.

Mack is a complete change of pace and breath of fresh air for Cards fans of all ages- but probably most importantly, recruits and players.

From Tweeting out his family having dinner at budget-friendly restaurants (as opposed to Pitino sipping a $300 glass of wine at a more private establishment)…

To bringing his daughter to ACC Media Day and letting her run his twitter account…

Mack gets it. He is engaging to the players and fans, and makes his brand extremely easy to root for. Before he has even coached his first game at Louisville, he has already won over his team and his fan base.

The Rivalry

One key ingredient that seemed to lose a little bit of luster during the Pitino era was the lack of desire to beat his biggest rival, Kentucky. Though it is understandable that Pitino had a soft spot for a school where he previously had so much success, his teams never played up to their potential against Kentucky- even in their best years.

The rivalry picked up a little bit of steam when John Calipari was hired in 2009, given Pitino and Cals general distain for one another. Still, that seemed like more of a personal rivalry than two schools having a hatred for one another.

What separates Louisville and Kentucky from most other rivalries will always be the every day interactions. There is no “Louisville camp” or “Kentucky camp,” the vast majority of Cards and Cats fans live together, work  together, and have to interact every day.

Mack understands the rivalry. Just as he did at Xavier. His competitive drive and willingness to trash talk are what makes him a master at rivalry-ing. And although no one in their right mind is cheering for a brawl, Louisville and Kentucky is likely to be taken up another notch during the Mack era.

A good ole fashion rivalry is exactly what it takes to get the college basketball viewership juices flowing. And it is a safe bet that the pulse of the nation will be raised when the Battle of Bluegrass rolls around over the course of the next decade.

Overcoming Obstacles

Besides rivalries, there is nothing people enjoy watching more than a comeback story. From Peyton Manning to Michael Jordan to Tiger Woods to Lance Armstrong. When athletes or teams have a fall from glory, the only thing audiences love to see more than their failures is their ensuing successes.

Louisville basketball’s fall from grace was anything but graceful. You know the story at this point. Multiple scandals, FBI investigations, vacations of wins, losses of coaches, and athletic directors. More to come, too.

But, at the end of it all, the Chris Mack era serves as a light at the end of the tunnel.

There are some times in sports when it just feels like a coach and a team are on a collision course with each other. Chris Mack and Louisville seem meant for each other. Louisville needs Mack just as badly as Mack needs Louisville, and this glove-like fit is already being set in motion before Mack has even coached a game for the Cards.

Louisville has the chance to be what college basketball needs over the next decade. And you should be all-in on the comeback story.