Louisville football is just three weekends away from the Cardinals' massive Week 1 showdown with Ole Miss, and the Cardinals continue to make some noise this offseason in preseason rankings. Louisville fans were shocked when the Cardinals weren’t ranked in the Coaches Poll preseason rankings, but as Week 1 approaches, Louisville is in nearly every other ranking.
The Cardinals made some major moves this offseason, and now Jeff Brohm and his squad continue to get the recognition they deserve. Recently, On3's 'Sports' Brett McMurphy released his preseason top 25, and Cardinals fans will be very pleased with where they rank.
Louisville football gets more preseason recognition
Brohm made it clear last year that when Louisville started 3-0 and wasn’t ranked, the rankings don’t bother him and will play themselves out. While he isn’t wrong, and the Cardinals should have the same mindset going into Week 1, the Cardinals have a strong case for being ranked, and McMurphy’s rankings prove that.
Louisville comes in ranked No. 21 in On3 Sports college football’s reporter preseason rankings. The Cardinals have been ranked in this range in multiple reporters' preseason rankings, including ESPN’s Greg McElroy, where they are ranked No. 23, Fox Sports' Joel Klatt, where they are ranked No. 19, and Josh Pate’s power ratings, where they are ranked as high as No. 17.
The Cardinals have a huge Week 1 game against Ole Miss; if they pull off an upset over the Rebels, Louisville has a strong case to jump into the top 25. The Rebels have two preseason All-Americans in quarterback Trinidad Chambliss and running back Kewan Lacy. Ole Miss is ranked No. 9 overall in McMurphy’s preseason rankings, giving Louisville a huge opportunity to really set the tone for their 2026-27 season.
As for Louisville, the Cardinals have two preseason All-Americans themselves. The Cards will be led on offense by preseason All-American Isaac Brown, a star running back coming off a dominant year in which he averaged 8.8 yards per carry after earning 101 carries for 884 yards and seven rushing touchdowns. The other preseason All-American is on the defensive end, Clev Lubin. The elite edge rusher had a team-high 8.5 sacks and added 59 tackles, three pass deflections, and three forced fumbles.
Louisville has high expectations for this upcoming season and a real chance at the ACC Title. The Cards' No. 21 ranking in a respected college football reporter's poll proves this team has a chance to be special this upcoming season and sets up a huge Week 1 game against Ole Miss.
Other ACC teams ranked in the top 25 include Miami at No. 8 and SMU at No. 16.
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