Louisville football: Five biggest needs of improvement after bye week

LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY - SEPTEMBER 02: Jawon Pass #4 of the Louisville Cardinals throws the ball against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on September 02, 2019 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY - SEPTEMBER 02: Jawon Pass #4 of the Louisville Cardinals throws the ball against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish on September 02, 2019 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
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We’ve seen a much improved Louisville football team through the first four weeks of the season but there is still a long way to go for Scott Satterfield and company in 2019.

Louisville football comes off of their first bye week with a record of 2-2 having had a decent start to the year. Considering the fact that the team only won a total of just two games last year, I would say that’s progress.

In their opening game against Notre Dame, the Cardinals showed that they were a rejuvenated team under new head coach Scott Satterfield. In the first half, Louisville played the Irish as best as it could keeping the contest close. Ultimately Notre Dame would pull away in the second half to win the game, but as a fan, you had to appreciate the fight that came from the team.

Louisville’s most complete performance came against EKU when it completely shut out the Colonels offense. The Cardinals won 42-0 and it was the first time since 2013 (Charlie Strong era) that the defense didn’t allow a single point from an opponent.

In their second victory of the season, Louisville showed how impressive they can be offensively especially when they get the ball in TuTu Atwell’s hands. He went off against the Hilltoppers, registering three touchdowns and had over 145 yards receiving with just five catches.

The Cardinal’s previous game against the Florida State Seminoles was one that showed resiliency because Louisville trailed by 21 points in the first quarter and ended up making the contest competitive in the second half. They lost the game 35-24 but fans have to feel encouraged by the leadership off Satterfield because I am not so sure that this team last year continues to play hard after trailing by that many points.

With all of this being said, we are a quarter of a way into the 2019 college football season and this team has a lot of work to do if they want to win their first conference game since 2017 when they face off against Boston College at home on Saturday.

Here are five areas that Louisville must improve in as they head into their second ACC matchup of the season.