Louisville football: The 50 greatest Cardinals of all time

Plenty of players to make this list were multi-sport stars in high school, but only one player can say that he was a multi-sport athlete while at Louisville.

Joshua Tinch became an instant fan favorite in 2002 when he burst onto the scene as a solid wide receiver for John L. Smith and the Cardinals football team. But he also stuck around and was good enough to earn playing time for Rick Pitino and the basketball Cards.

He continued this into his sophomore year under first-year head coach Bobby Petrino where he was allowed to finish out the season on the football field before transitioning and using his 6-foot-3 frame and freak athleticism to help out Pitino’s squad.

While he only joined the basketball team after the football season concluded, Tinch’s contributions were significant and helped the Cards with depth in the earlier Pitino years. He finished his career having played in 22 games where he averaged 1.2 points and 0.6 rebounds per game.

The Albany, Georgia native was a multi-sport athlete for two years before focusing only on football in his last two seasons.

Tinch’s career on the football field was much more successful than on the court. He was the epitome of consistency over his four years with the Cards, recording at least 12.8 yards per reception and racking up more than 400 yards each season.

The versatile Tinch’s senior season ended with him recording 855 receiving yards and four touchdowns.

He finished his career with 2,195 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns while helping guide the Cardinals to new heights under the tutelage of Smith and Petrino.

Tinch remains the only Cardinal to start in a bowl game and play in an NCAA Tournament basketball game.