Louisville football is ramping up training as the Cardinals' first game quickly approaches. Louisville has a massive Week 1 opponent in Ole Miss, a likely AP top-10 team, giving the Cardinals a huge opportunity to send a loud message to the rest of the league.
The Cardinals are trending as a potential top-25 team in the preseason AP Poll; while they weren’t ranked in the Coaches Poll, they have been a consistent top-25 team in media preseason polls. Now, as Louisville is just weeks away from its huge showdown with Ole Miss, the Cardinals are beginning their offseason scrimmages.
Louisville held its first scrimmage leading up to the game, and there, of course, was some good and some bad.
Jeff Brohm not impressed by Cardinals defense in first scrimmage
Brohm wasn’t too impressed with his defense and their performance in the first scrimmage, making it clear he “was not real happy,” but it is “really fixable.”
“I was not real happy with the defense, so it is good that they struggled,” stated Brohm after the Cardinals' first scrimmage. “They gave up way too many big plays. They had a couple of busts that really cost us. So, that needs to be fixed, but that is really fixable.
The Cardinals giving up chunk plays has been a concern and weakness in the past, but they took a step forward this past season. Louisville had to replace multiple starters in their secondary this offseason, but they learned just yesterday that they got key defensive back Jabari Mack back after the “five-for-five” rule.
The Cardinals' defensive line is expected to be one of the top units in the ACC, with Clev Lubin, AJ Green, and Tyler Thompson all up front, and Louisville has experience in the linebacker room with TJ Capers, Stanquan Clark, Kalib Perry, and Antonio Watts.
The defense has the potential to be one of the Cardinals' strengths, like ESPN’s Greg McElroy reported, but Brohm makes it clear they have to clean up giving up the big plays.
“We gave up some big plays,” stated Brohm. “Probably half of it is execution, and half of it is we have to reexamine the play call. Make sure we are in something a little more sound and a little safer. Learn and manage when to take our risks. Make sure that when we do, we hit. And if not, we've got to pull that back.”
The Cardinals defense has been pretty impressive so far in fall camp, but this scrimmage might be the motivation and spark they need heading into their huge Week 1 showdown. Ole Miss will be a tough challenge, and Louisville will have to limit big plays from the Rebels' two preseason All-Americans.
This scrimmage showed Brohm and the Cardinals that they still have work to do. However, Brohm made it clear it is fixable, and he has the confidence that the changes will be made. Louisville will take on Ole Miss in Week 1 in Tennessee on September 6.
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