Louisville football has emerged as one of the most explosive offenses in the nation over the last three seasons.
This has led to the Cardinals to be one of the most exciting teams to watch nationwide. However, when thinking of explosive offense, many may think of SEC and Big 10 giants, but the Cardinals sneak right into that category.
In a recent ranking by Pick Six, the Cardinals ranked No.14 for college football's best offenses in the last three seasons. Louisville was ahead of teams like Penn State, Michigan, Oklahoma, Florida, Auburn, and many more. Let's take a look behind the success and how they have maintained this extraordinary feat.
Louisville football has had a sneaky good offense over the past three seasons
Ultimate balanced attack
Louisville football was led by former head coach Scott Satterfield. The 2022 season was much different than recent years, as the 2022 offense was much more balanced.
Dual-threat quarterback Malik Cunningham was the center of attention for the Cardinals as he recorded 1,568 passing yards, 560 rushing yards, and 20 touchdowns, 12 of those touchdowns coming from the ground.
This offense averaged 205 passing yards and 200 rushing yards per game, which is impressive for such an equally balanced attack.
The uniqueness of that offense did not stop there. Louisville football almost had two quarterbacks throw for over 1,000 yards. However, Malik was banged up throughout the season, so backup quarterback Brock Domann stepped in. Domann threw for 998 passing yards, along with five total touchdowns.
The ground game was led by three-headed monsters. Jawhar Jordan, Tiyon Evans, and Malik Cunningham tallied up a majority of the rushing yards for Louisville football. Jordan had 815 rushing yards and four touchdowns, Evans finished with 525 yards and six touchdowns, and quarterback Malik Cunningham rushed for 560 yards and, as previously mentioned, piled up 12 touchdowns.
Cardinals fans can not discuss the 2022 season without mentioning the 1,000-yard receiver Tyler Hudson. Hudson stretched out defenses and was the number one target, regardless of who threw the ball for Louisville. Tyler hauled in 69 catches, 1,034 yards, and two touchdowns. This balanced attack kept defenses on their toes, and Louisville football finished with an 8-5 record.
A familiar face comes home
Quarterback Jack Plummer threw for 3,204 yards, which was 800 more yards than the two quarterbacks combined in 2022. He also finished with 21 passing touchdowns and played every game for the Cardinals.
Louisville football's running back Jawhar Jordan made a big leap and secured 1,128 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns. Backup Isaac Guernedo also had a good season for Louisville football, as he recorded 810 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns.
Although Louisville football had an explosive offense, they did not have a wide receiver go over 1,000 yards. The passing game was spread out through the receiver room. Jamari Thrash led the team in receiving yards with 858 and six touchdowns. Louisville averaged 236 passing yards and 178 rushing yards per game.
Picked up right where they left off
Coming into the 2024 season, Louisville football had high expectations. They were coming off the best season in program history and got their guy Jeff Brohm back. Transfer quarterback Tyler Shough decided to use his final year of eligibility in Louisville. They did not completely live up to fan expectations, but they still had a successful season.
Louisville football finished with a 9-4 record with a very tough schedule. Three of their losses were against two playoff teams in Notre Dame and SMU and a tough team in Miami. They did have an impressive 33-21 victory at the eventual ACC champs in the Clemson Tigers.
Quarterback Tyler Shough also had a successful season where he caught the eyes of NFL scouts after an injury-riddled college career. Shough put up 3,195 passing yards with a 23-6 touchdown interception ratio. He is projected to go on day 2-3 in the NFL Draft.
The offense was not all Tyler Shough; Louisville football also had a 1,000-yard rusher and receiver. Running back Isaac Brown, was incredible for the Cardinals. Brown rushed for 1173 yards, 11 touchdowns, and an unbelievable 7.1 yards per carry. Shough's number one target, Ja'Corey Brooks, caught 61 passes, nine touchdowns, and recorded 1,013 yards.
This upcoming season
Jeff Brohm will be coaching his third quarterback in three seasons here at Louisville. Brohm has brought the best out of his quarterbacks and has had explosive offenses two years in a row. If he wants to continue the trend, then he will have to bring out the best in Miller Moss. Moss is coming off a 2,555-yard season with 18 touchdowns. Expect that passing yard number to reach at least 3,000 yards. Brohm has not had a quarterback throw for under 3,000 yards in his two seasons at Louisville. With the rise of SMU, Miami, and Syracuse, the ACC is a complete and tough conference. Louisville football will need to continue their dominance on offense in 2025 if they want to see success for a third year in a row under Head Coach Jeff Brohm.