2008 Louisville Cardinals Football Preview

2008 Louisville Cardinals season preview from Maddux Sports. Below you can find our official Louisville Cardinals football preview as well as the 2008 Louisville Cardinals Football Schedule. After reading this article check out our college football predictions against the current point spread.

Coach: Steve Kragthorpe (2nd year at Louisville)
Team Name: Cardinals
2007 Overall Record: 6-6
Returning Starters: 9

Last season, the Cardinals of Louisville (6-6 overall, 3-4 Big East) finished in fifth-place and out of the running for a bowl berth. This season will not be an easy one for this team as record-setting QB Brian Brohm has gone pro. The Cardinals may, for a second-season running, be watching all of the bowl games rather than playing in one. However, this is a club who’s season can go either way.

Senior QB Hunter Cantwell (14 ATT, 8 COMP, 0 TDs, 1 INT) has little experience but a whole lot of talent, including an accurate cannon for an arm. He’s a true NFL prospect. The running game includes senior Brock Bolen (88 CAR, 358 YDS, 7 TDs) and sophomore speedster Bilal Powell. There’s talent in the receiving group but not much experience. Wideout starting spots are up for grabs.

The defense gave up 31.4 PPG in 2007. That is just too many points if this team expects to post a winning record. The linebacking squad should be improved by Miami transfer James Bryant, while the D-line looks to be helped by Michigan transfer James McKinney. Senior Earl Heyman, at DT, and junior L.D. Scott, at DE, bring experience and solid performance. Junior college transfer Chris Campa will start at the strong side of the linebacking squad. In the secondary, there are problems with depth. But the starters bring talent and experience.

Tossup contests include the opener on August 31 when Kentucky visits. Two straight home games on September 17 versus Kansas State and September 26 against Connecticut may just define this club’s season. Pittsburgh on November 8 and Cincinnati on November 14 are also swing contests.

Coach Steve Kragthorpe (6-6 in one year) has brought in nine junior college players to add depth to a thin team. He’s guiding this club through a major transition that will take a few years to pan out. These guys could win eight games, but they’ll have to take every one of their tossups to do so.

Louisville Cardinals Football Schedule

Date	Opponent	Home/Away
Aug 31	Kentucky	Home
Sep 6	Tenn Tech	Home
Sep 17	Kansas State	Home
Sep 27	Connecticut	Home
Oct 10	Memphis	Away
Oct 18	Middle Tennessee	Home
Oct 25	South Florida	Home
Nov 1	Syracuse	Away
Nov 8	Pittsburgh	Away
Nov 14	Cincinnati	Home
Nov 22	West Virginia	Home
Dec 4	Rutgers	Away

 

For more info on the 2008 Louisville Cardinals football program, view the Cardinals football site or you can read about other Big East teams below.