Paul Chiara scored his first-career touchdown against Louisville last season
Countdown to Kickoff: Louisville Primed For Second Season in BIG EAST
8/21/2006 2:18:36 PM | Football
GAME 8: vs. Louisville
Saturday, October 21, 2006
Carrier Dome, Syracuse, N.Y.
| ABOUT LOUISVILLE ... |
| Location: Louisville, Ky. |
| Enrollment: 24,000 |
| Nickname: Cardinals |
| Colors: Red & Black |
| Conference: BIG EAST |
| Stadium (Capacity): Papa John's Cardinals Stadium (42,000) |
| Athletics Director: Tom Jurich |
| Starters Returning/Lost: 19/12 |
| Lettermen Returning/Lost: 48/14 |
| Check It Out ...
Prominent Louisville Alumni
Tom Jackson (NFL analyst), Johnny Unitas (NFL Hall of Famer), Wes Unseld (Basketball Hall of Famer).
Cardinal Rivalries
Louisville battles for two trophies each season: The Governor’s Cup (Kentucky) and The Keg of Nails (Cincinnati).
Boeheim Protege
Rick Pitino, an SU assistant coach from 1976-78, has been the Louisville men’s basketball head coach since 2001.
All In the Family
Brian Brohm’s father and two older brothers all played football at Louisville. His brothers were both quarterbacks and are members of the football staff. His oldest brother, Greg, is the Director of Football Operations and his other brother, Jeff, is the Quarterbacks coach.
Cardinals and Throgoughbreds
The Louisville marching band has performed "My Old Kentucky Home", the state song of Kentucky, at every Kentucky Derby since 1936.
NFL Cardinals
Deion Branch, WR, New England Patriots
David Akers, K, Philadelphia Eagles
Lionel Gates, RB, Buffalo Bills
Sam Madison, CB, New York Giants
Antoine Harris, CB, Tennessee Titans
Ted Washington, DT, Cleveland Browns
Dave Ragone, QB, Houston Texans
Roman Oben, OT, San Diego Chargers
Elvis Dumervil, DE, Denver Broncos
Kerry Rhodes, CB, New York Jets |
Last season, Syracuse and Louisville met in the Orange’s season finale for the first time as BIG EAST counterparts. This season, the Orange welcomes the Cardinals into the Dome for only the second time ever. The Cardinals were projected to finish second in the BIG EAST in the preseason media poll and were chosen 13th in both the USA TODAY and AP polls.
In 12 days, Syracuse will take the field. Visit suathletics.com regularly for 'Countdown to Kickoff' to get an inside look at the 2006 season as the excitement builds. Season and individual game tickets are available via the internet and at the Carrier Dome Box Office (1-888-DOMETIX). To purchase tickets via the internet, click here.
Studying Louisville
Head Coach
Bobby Petrino is entering his fourth year at Louisville, where he has compiled a record of 29-8. Petrino has led the Cardinals to a winning season and a bowl game in each of his first three seasons. Petrino is an offensive-minded coach, having served as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Auburn, Utah State, Arizona State, Nevada and Idaho. He spent three seasons in the NFL with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Petrino was a two-time All-America quarterback at NAIA Carroll College (1979-83).
2005 Record
9-3 / 5-2 BIG EAST (2nd Place)
2006 Cardinals
OFFENSE
The Louisville offense is spearheaded by two First-Team All-BIG EAST selections in 2005: junior quarterback Brian Brohm and senior running 
back Michael Bush. Brohm (right)led the BIG EAST in completions (207), passing yards (2,883), passing touchdowns (19), passing efficiency (166.7) and total offense (284.7 yards/game) and was named the BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year. He missed the final two games of the season with a leg injury he suffered against Syracuse. He is on the Maxwell and O’Brien Awards preseason watch lists. Bush was second in the conference in rushing yards (1,143) and led the nation in scoring (14.4 ppg). He set school records for rushing touchdowns (23) and points scored (144). The Cardinals had four of the top receivers in the BIG EAST in 2005 and return two of them. Sophomore Mario Urrutia ranked second in the conference in receiving yards per game (72.5) and sixth in receptions per game (3.36) a year ago. He is the Cardinals’ top returning receiver. Junior Harry Douglas made 27 receptions for 457 yards in 2005. Louisville also welcomes in three transfers this season: junior Patrick Carter (Georgia Tech), sophomore Chris Vaughn (Notre Dame) and sophomore Corey Thompson (Duke). The offensive line returns just a pair of sophomores from last season. Junior placekicker Art Carmody led the BIG EAST in field goal percentage (87.5).
back Michael Bush. Brohm (right)led the BIG EAST in completions (207), passing yards (2,883), passing touchdowns (19), passing efficiency (166.7) and total offense (284.7 yards/game) and was named the BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year. He missed the final two games of the season with a leg injury he suffered against Syracuse. He is on the Maxwell and O’Brien Awards preseason watch lists. Bush was second in the conference in rushing yards (1,143) and led the nation in scoring (14.4 ppg). He set school records for rushing touchdowns (23) and points scored (144). The Cardinals had four of the top receivers in the BIG EAST in 2005 and return two of them. Sophomore Mario Urrutia ranked second in the conference in receiving yards per game (72.5) and sixth in receptions per game (3.36) a year ago. He is the Cardinals’ top returning receiver. Junior Harry Douglas made 27 receptions for 457 yards in 2005. Louisville also welcomes in three transfers this season: junior Patrick Carter (Georgia Tech), sophomore Chris Vaughn (Notre Dame) and sophomore Corey Thompson (Duke). The offensive line returns just a pair of sophomores from last season. Junior placekicker Art Carmody led the BIG EAST in field goal percentage (87.5). DEFENSE
Three of Louisville’s top-five tacklers from 2005 graduated, including defensive end Elvis Dumervil. Dumervil won the Nagurski Award as the nation’s top defensive player and the BIG EAST’s Defensive Player of the Year award. The All-American led the nation with 20 sacks. Senior Zach Anderson and junior Brandon Cox will fill the void at defensive end. The duo combined for 36 tackles and 3.5 sacks in 2005. Seniors Nate Harris and 
Abe Brown will lead the linebacking corps. Harris (right, #10) was second on the team in tackles (66), tackles for loss (11.5) and sacks (seven). Brown was fourth in tackles (51) and tied for second in pass break-ups (four). The secondary returns all four starters from a year ago. Senior safety Brandon Sharp and sophomore cornerback Rod Council each recorded 48 tackles in 2005. Sophomore safety Jon Russell led the team with two interceptions a year ago.
Abe Brown will lead the linebacking corps. Harris (right, #10) was second on the team in tackles (66), tackles for loss (11.5) and sacks (seven). Brown was fourth in tackles (51) and tied for second in pass break-ups (four). The secondary returns all four starters from a year ago. Senior safety Brandon Sharp and sophomore cornerback Rod Council each recorded 48 tackles in 2005. Sophomore safety Jon Russell led the team with two interceptions a year ago. 2005 Review
The Cardinals proved to be a worthy addition to the BIG EAST after their first season in the conference. After opening the season with two victories and rising to the top ten in both national polls, the Cardinals were upset by South Florida, 45-14, in a meeting of BIG EAST newcomers. The loss snapped Louisville’s nine-game winning streak, the third-longest in Division I-A at the time. The Cardinals followed that game up with two more wins before losing to West Virginia, 46-44 in triple overtime. Louisville bounced back from the 0-2 conference record to win its final five BIG EAST games and claim second place in the conference. Louisville earned a bid to the Gator Bowl, falling to 12-th ranked Virginia Tech, 35-24. The Cardinals finished the season ranked 19th in the AP poll and 2oth in the USA Today poll. The Cardinals were an offensive power in 2005, ranking third in scoring offense, ninth in total offense and 15th in passing offense. They led the BIG EAST in all of those categories. The Cardinals scored over 40 points in eight games, including three 60-point performances. The Cardinal defense tied for second in the nation in sacks and fourth in the conference in total defense.
2006 Schedule
| 9/3 | KENTUCKY |
| 9/9 | at Temple |
| 9/16 | MIAMI (FL) |
| 9/23 | at Kansas State |
| 10/6 | ar Middle Tennessee State |
| 10/14 | CINCINNATI |
| 10/21 | at Syracuse |
| 11/2 | WEST VIRGINIA |
| 11/9 | at Rutgers |
| 11/18 | SOUTH FLORIDA |
| 11/25 | at Pittsburgh |
| 12/2 | CONNECTICUT |
Monday, June 08
Friday, June 05
Sunday, May 24
Saturday, May 23
