Louisville football had its annual Spring Game on Friday night, and the Cardinals fans got their first look at this new Jeff Brohm team. The red team would win 32-24 over the white team, and Louisville football saw a lot of good in this early look.
Louisville has some things it must fix, but there is still all of spring and summer, and this new Cardinals offense showed flashes of excellence. The defense stepped up and played much better than most thought it would and kept the Cardinals' offense out of the endzone for a good amount of the game. The Cardinals' defense was without their star linebacker, Stanquan Clark, but T.J. Quinn was able to hold the fort down.
Louisville's first game of the 2025 season is against Eastern Kentucky at home on Aug. 30. The Cardinals are expected to hit the transfer portal this upcoming week to ensure they are legit contenders in the ACC.
Louisville football’s Spring Game raises 5 burning questions immediately
Before we jump into the transfer portal conversations, let us break down Friday night and talk about what went well and what went bad. We will discuss who needs to improve, what positions are deep, what positions are weak, what areas Brohm should target in the portal, and more.
So here are five burning questions immediately after Louisville football's Spring Game.
5. Who is Jeff Brohm's QB2?
Louisville football's QB1 is a lock with the USC transfer Miller Moss. The Cardinals got one of the best quarterbacks who entered the winter transfer portal, and while that was a massive get, Louisville is still trying to find its QB2.
The Cardinals were expecting Deuce Adams to take that jump and be Brohm's second option in the quarterback room, but Adams didn't perform well in the spring camp, which led to Brady Allen being QB2 in the Spring Game. The 6-foot-6, 220-pound quarterback had an excellent performance on Friday night, completing 71.4 percent of his 14 pass attempts for 124 passing yards. As for Adams, he was a 3-star recruit out of Austin, Texas, and is the Cardinals' biggest mobile threat in the quarterback room. In his junior year of high school, he threw for 3,007 yards and 34 touchdowns with a 67 completion percentage. The Cardinals had a lot of hope and high expectations for the returning freshman, but after a disappointing fall and spring camp, Brohm is left wondering who will be that QB2.
As of now, Allen is that guy. He completed multiple spectacular throws in tight windows Friday night and had much better numbers, as Allen finished 8-of-15 with 55 passing yards. The quarterback room seems to be a bit of a concern after Moss, but after Friday night, it appears that Allen is now the Cardinals' QB2.
Related: 3 Cardinals with the most to prove in spring for Louisville football
4. Who will step up in the wide receiver room?
Louisville football is expected to have a highly explosive offense as Chris Bell and Caullin Lacy are poised to have spectacular years. The two returning wide receivers have a ceiling of each breaking the 1,000 receiving yard mark. Last season, Bell, in his junior year, continued to take massive steps as he finished the year with 43 receptions and 737 receiving yards. He was Tyler Shough's No. 2 option, and with Lacy out, he became a legitimate threat on the outside. Bell struggled in the Spring Game as he caught just five receptions for 39 yards, fumbled the ball, and dropped some catches he should have caught. Fans aren't screaming about Bell's performance and understand it is just spring ball, but it wasn't his night. Bell will be one of the best wide receivers in the ACC next season and is set to have a breakout season.
As for Lacy, he suffered an injury last season but showed flashes of why he has such a high ceiling. The speedster transfer from Southern Alabama finished the spring game with 99 receiving yards and one touchdown and was Moss's favorite target. The 5'10 wide receiver should be a lethal downfield threat, as he can blow by the secondary and make incredible catches. With Southern Alabama, he finished his junior season with 91 receptions and 1,316 receiving yards, both of which were in the top 10 in the nation.
However, after these two wide receivers, the Cardinals don't have much left in that skill position room. The 6-foot-1 junior out of Lilburn, Ga., Antonio Meeks, stepped up Friday night and was WR3. Meeks secured an impressive 35-yard reception from Moss in the second half, which led to a touchdown. He secured just three catches for 42 yards last year, so with the transfer portal opening up on April 16, it would not shock many to see Brohm go after some wide receivers.
Related: 5 Louisville football players who will be rewarded for staying with Jeff Brohm
3. Can Miller Moss fix his interception concern?
While the interception wasn't Miller Moss's fault, it is a big concern for some fans as Moss has had a turnover issue in the past. Moss had a great game on Friday as he threw for 208 yards on 18-of-26 with a passing touchdown to Antonio Meeks. The Cardinals QB1 showed flashes of excellence on Friday night as he threw some impressive balls in tight windows and picked up big plays. However, he also showed some inconsistency at times, as he overthrew a couple of receivers and threw an interception.
Last season for the Trojans, he threw nine interceptions compared to his 18 passing touchdowns. In comparison, Tyler Shough threw 26 touchdowns but only six interceptions. The USC transfer has tremendous skill and touch for deep passes, and on Friday, he showed why he was a 4-star prospect in the transfer portal. Moss is a pocket passer at 6-foot-1 and showed at times of being a little rattled from the pressure. Brohm stated after the game that he would like Moss to stay in the pocket a little longer with some pressure rather than trying to scramble out.
If Moss can fix his interception concern from last season, he has a chance to be extremely good. He has all the tools on offense with Isaac Brown and his two wideouts, whom we just talked about, to take that massive leap. The performance Moss displayed Friday should give Louisville fans hope that he can be that guy to help guide this offense to another successful season.
Related: Louisville football 2025 game-by-game predictions
2. Is the Cardinals secondary better than most think?
The Cardinals, including Quincy Riley, lost their top four of five corners from last year. The Cardinals' secondary is a glaring hole in this roster, but the performance they displayed Friday night was one that many fans did not expect. Entering the spring game, many fans were interested in seeing the secondary school performance and where they were as a group.
Walking out of the stadium, the Cardinals fans were happily pleased with this new secondary, making fans think how much they really need someone from the transfer portal. Rae'mon Mosby and Rodney Johnson started for the cornerbacks, while D'Angelo Hutchinson and Jojo Evans were the starting safeties. Johnson earned the lone interception and turnover for the defense and secured a sack. This secondary lineup was impressive against the highly skilled Cardinal offense.
Other players who got reps include Antonio Harris and Jabari Mack, who each earned a pass deflection, and Corey Gordon, who had an impressive tackle on fourth down. Louisville should still try to land a player in the portal to give this lineup some experience. Still, after the Cardinal's display on Friday night, they showed some potential that has fans more excited than before Friday night.
Related: 3 glaring questions Louisville football must answer during spring practice
1. How far can this rushing attack take Louisville?
The Cardinals will be a run-dominant team as they bring back one of the best players in college football, Isaac Brown. The freshman running back doesn't need an introduction, but for those who don't know, Brown had a historic freshman season last year as he rushed for 1,173 yards and 11 touchdowns on 7.1 yards per carry. He earned a spot on the All-ACC Second Team, ACC Offensive Rookie of the Year, and the ACC Rookie of the Year. He also earned a spot on the Freshman All-American team by PFF and 247Sports.
So, the Cardinals have a dominant RB1 and a massive rushing attack, as their RB2 will be Duke Watson. The Cardinals RB2 is also a freshman, and last season, he averaged 8.9 yards per carry, as he finished with 597 rushing yards on 67 attempts. Brown wasn't seen much on Friday night, as there is no reason to risk an injury, but as for Watson, he could display why he would make this rushing attack lethal. Watson broke free for a 60-yard rushing touchdown and was able to juke some defenders in the impressive run.
The Cardinals' run game remained stagnant for most of the night, but if Louisville can break free for some extended rushing plays, that is all that matters. This one-two punch of Brown and Watson will tire the defense, as they won't be able to take any plays off. The blueprint for Louisville to be good next year will rely heavily on this rushing attack. Brown and Watson both will have to have similar numbers from last year if Louisville wants to compete with SMU, Clemson and Miami.
Friday night showed that the Cardinals need to break free just once, and they can find a way to win. With Brown leading the charge, it will be expected of him to put up high numbers daily, but when Watson comes in, he will be a player who could break free for long runs as the defense might try and take a play off.
This rushing room has the potential to be one of the best in the nation, and if both backs can be just as explosive as last year, then that will open up the passing game, and this offense can guide this team to an ACC Championship game.