2022 season: 8-5, 4-4 in the ACC (third in the Atlantic)
Head Coach: Jeff Brohm (first season)
It is a season of change for the Cardinals, as they will have a new head coach in Jeff Brohm. Brohm comes to Louisville from Purdue, where he was 36-34 and guided the Boilermakers to a Big Ten title game in 2022. It’s a homecoming for Brohm, as he was the starting quarterback for Louisville for two seasons and led the team to the 1993 Liberty Bowl. Brohm also returned to the Cardinals after his playing career, spending time as quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator before going elsewhere.
Due to his playing background, Brohm has a reputation as an excellent quarterback mentor, and Louisville fans will have to get used to seeing a new face under center to start the year for the first time in five years. Malik Cunningham moved on from the program after last season, leaving as one of the most decorated signal callers in program history. In his five years with the Cardinals, Cunningham accounted for 100 touchdowns, good for second in program history. Like many other coaches across the country, Brohm opted to bring in a veteran replacement from the transfer portal, and he found a familiar one in former Purdue quarterback and Cal transfer Jack Plummer.
Plummer had an extremely productive year in his first year away from Coach Brohm, throwing for 3,095 yards and 21 touchdowns for the Golden Bears. The fifth year had his biggest game against arguably his most talented opponent in USC, where he threw to the tune of 406 yards and three touchdowns in a 41-35 loss to the Trojans. Now joining the ACC, the gunslinger has shown that he can compete against top teams, something he will have to do consistently if Louisville wants to stake a claim as one of the ACC’s best teams.
In the backfield, Plummer will be joined by the explosive Jawhar Jordan, who was the Cardinals’ leading rusher a year ago. The redshirt junior went for 815 yards and four touchdowns on 5.7 yards per carry last year, giving Brohm a valuable weapon on offense. Jordan is also a dynamic return man, returning a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown against Cincinnati last season. The Long Island, N.Y., native finished the year on a high note, torching the Bearcats in the Fenway Bowl for 115 rushing yards and two touchdowns in addition to the aforementioned return.
Plummer and Jordan will be protected by a solid offensive line, one that is headlined by center Bryan Hudson. The redshirt senior was selected to the preseason All-ACC team, giving the Cardinals an excellent presence in the middle of the trenches.
Louisville’s defense is losing several key producers such as Yasir Abdullah and Yaya Diaby, but the unit should still be solid this season. The defensive line corps is deep, spearheaded by graduate student Jermayne Lole. Although he missed all but two games last year due to injury, the former Arizona State Sun Devil is one of the best run defenders in the country, as he was the highest graded defensive tackle in the PAC-12 during his last year in Tempe.
In the secondary, the Cardinals return a productive starter at corner in Jarvis Brownlee Jr. The junior started every game last season for Louisville, finishing third on the team with 66 tackles. They also added a defensive back in North Carolina transfer Storm Duck. Duck was highly productive during his final season in Chapel Hill, finishing top ten in the league in pass breakups and interceptions while being named to the All-ACC second team.
Luckily for Brohm’s squad, they drew one of the relatively easier schedules in the conference this season. The Cardinals dodge playing any of the projected top 3 teams in the ACC in Clemson, Florida State and North Carolina while also getting a home date with Duke. If Louisville can capitalize on their opportunities, Brohm’s first year could be a major success.
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