You must be registered for see images attach
—ESPN’s latest way too early college hoops rankings
have Louisville at No. 13.
—Athlon’s
preseason bowl projections have Louisville taking on Houston in the Pop-Tarts Bowl.
—The CJ’s Brooks Holton continues his preseason preview series with
a closer look at Adrian Wooley.
—Isaac Trotter of CBS
has high praise for Pat Kelsey’s transfer portal haul.
There won’t be another Michigan portal class, but if there were, it would be ____: Louisville
Michigan using the No. 1 portal class to kickstart a run toward the National Championship that culminated in three lottery picks (Morez Johnson, Yaxel Lendeborg and Aday Mara) is historic stuff. That’s not going to happen again for a hot minute, but
Louisville’s collection of raw talent possesses a very high ceiling if it all clicks.
The mere presence of top-rated transfer
Flory Bidunga gives Louisville a shot to have a top-15 defense just because he’s on the floor. Bidunga has a 7-foot-3 wingspan and insane athleticism, which helps him create problems and douse fires inside, outside and everywhere in between.
Louisville also used the portal to get really, really old. All six of Pat Kelsey’s transfers are upperclassmen, and Louisville won’t ask any of them to be something they aren’t.
Oregon transfer guard
Jackson Shelstad is comfortable being the head honcho of an outfit.
Karter Knox should buy right into his role as a 3-and-D wing who smashes in transition.
Iowa transfer forward
Alvaro Folgueiras should have a bit more freedom in Louisville’s scheme compared to the rigorous, effective bootcamp that is a Ben McCollum offense. His offensive creativity and secondary playmaking should be useful, and Folgueiras is a nice complement to Bidunga on offense.
Dayton transfer guard
De’Shayne Montgomery has some eye-popping moments while leaving you wanting a bit more. But as a second-unit bucket-getter? Sign me up.
Questions still abound with this group. Who makes everyone else better? Shelstad has to turn a corner in that department after operating as a bucket-getting guard for his whole life. Is this group actually physical enough to go toe-to-toe with the brutes down in
Florida or
Arizona?
It wasn’t always pretty for Michigan, but Dusty May problem-solved his way to the top of the mountain. Can Pat Kelsey do the same? The talent is certainly in the gym.
—Jeff Brohm
has been named to the Dodd Trophy Watch List. I never understand how you can have a preseason prediction about which coaches in college football are about to do the best jobs this fall, but as always, I’ll take it.
—The CJ’s Alexis Cubit
explains why Jeff Walz has no plans to bring in a general manager for the Louisville women’s basketball program.
—Louisville is
one of 25 teams that can win the men’s basketball national title in 2027.
—Two of the top five ain’t bad.
College football's 10 most explosive RBs entering this season
pic.twitter.com/DxSkuXiriH
— Cody Nagel (@CodyNagel247)
July 2, 2026
—While Clev Lubin is receiving the lion’s share of individual attention on the Louisville defense, Stanquan Clark could be
poised for a monster season.
—Eric Crawford has a
good read on Will Stein, who was back in Louisville and on the course at Hurstbourne on Wednesday.
—CBS
says Louisville has the fourth-best running back room in the country.
4. Louisville
The Cardinals have an electric duo in
Isaac Brown and
Keyjuan Brown, who have only been slowed by minor injuries. Isaac Brown is a smaller, slashing back who is electric in the open field. He thrives in outside-zone schemes and has an excellent ability to plant his foot and get north.
Brown has the ability to change a game at any moment and averaged 8.8 yards per carry on just 101 attempts. He rushed for more than 700 yards, scored six touchdowns and had 23 explosive runs despite missing three games. Keyjuan Brown is a power back who is a yards-after-contact machine. The duo forms a nice power-and-lightning combination.
Marquise Davis is likely the next man up after gaining valuable experience last season.
Conference rival Miami tops the list.
—Scott Satterfield
says that the entire Cincinnati staff new Texas Tech was tampering with Brendan Sorsby last season, but denies he or anyone else knew anything about Sorsby’s gambling problem.
—Ballard rising sophomore Mason Grivna was pumped to receive an offer from Louisville this summer.
So was his father, who played on the offensive line for John L. Smith in the late ‘90s.
—Louisville mayor Craig Greenberg
appears on Larry O’Bannon’s podcast.
—Guy can play.
Breaking down Miami Heat Rookie Ryan Conwell’s Summer League debut:
pic.twitter.com/T5f0MWqvGt
— Tyler DeSena (@desena_tyler)
July 4, 2026
—Rick Pitino says he
definitely plans to honor Kenny Klein at St. John’s this season.
—With less than a month to go until fall camp, Lincoln Kienholz
says he’s locked in.
—Basket Under Review
ranks the 25 toughest places to play in college basketball. The KFC Yum Center does not make the list.
—Though it drives ACC fans crazy, Notre Dame’s relationship with the league
continues to work, in large part because of the TV ratings and the attendance numbers the Irish bring to the table.
ACC schools see similar boosts in the stands.
“When they go to our campuses in the league, it’s like Duke basketball when we go to other people’s campuses,” King said. “They sell those games out.”
Since 2014, ACC teams average 8,500 more fans (22 percent) in visits from Notre Dame compared to the rest of the season. The trend plays out almost everywhere:
- Notre Dame represented two of the five largest crowds in stadium history at Pitt (2015 and ’25) and Louisville (2019 and ’23).
- Duke’s attendance has topped 40,000 in four games since 1989; two were against rival North Carolina, and the other two were against the Irish (2019 and ’23).
- Last year’s blockbuster drew Miami’s largest home crowd (66,793) since Hard Rock Stadium was renovated a decade ago.
- Notre Dame’s visits to Virginia outdrew games against the Cavaliers’ rival Virginia Tech by more than 4,000 in 2015 and 2,000 in ’21.
Football coaches can complain about the Irish skipping their bowl or enjoying the perks of a scheduling arrangement without full membership, but those same coaches aren’t griping about the money Notre Dame brings to their budgets.
—The Athletic’s CJ Moore
hands out some grades for the offseason hires in college basketball.
—ACC head of officials Al Riveron
has stepped down just two months before the start of the season.
—The CJ
previews this week’s ISCO Championship at Hurstbourne Country Club.
—If you missed it, the first episode of this year’s Cardinal Commitment series is below:
—Entering Year 3 as a Louisville basketball assistant coach, Ronnie Hamilton
reflects on his journey to, and with, Pat Kelsey’s Cardinals staff.
—Kerr Kriisa’s arrest
is wild.
—Louisville hoops commit Ferlandes Wright isn’t sure if he’s playing his last season of high school ball at Fairdale or La Lumiere, but he
knows where he’ll be playing the year after.
Ferlandes Wright isn’t settling as the only commit in Louisville’s 2027 class. He’s eying some players to join him. One of those players is five-star point guard
Reese Alston, who recently shared his thoughts on Louisville in an
interview with CardinalAuthority.
“The staff is talking about Reese Alston,” Wright said. “He’s a guy that they’re really looking forward to getting. He’s really good. It would be nice if he could commit, get to know him more, and hopefully play together.”
Another player the staff has talked to him about is five-star center
Darius Wabbington. Wabbington recently scheduled an official visit to Louisville for the weekend of Sept. 11 and broke down his recruitment in an interview with CardinalAuthority.
“From what I’ve seen on social media, the kid looks nice,” Wright said of Wabbington. “He has a post game, can shoot it as a real stretch four, and can really pass. He definitely looks solid.”
How would Wright sell the program? It’s all about the coach.
“Pat Kelsey is one-of-a-kind. The way he loves is definitely different,” Wright said. “With a person like Pat Kelsey behind you, you’re bound to reach all of your goals. That’s what most athletes are looking for: a coach who believes in them, loves them, and ultimately wants the best for them.”
That’s not all. The Louisville fanbase is a huge selling point.
“We have one of the best fanbases in all of college basketball,” Wright said. “Why not have an army behind you when you’re in college?”
—Louisville QB commit Dre’Mail Carothers from Owensboro
is weighing an early enrollment decision.
—Louisville basketball isn’t going to the Bahamas for a vacation.
It’s going for a head start.
—The latest From the Pink Seats Podcast looks at the
best game-winning moments in Louisville football history.
—Unlike the last two years, September is going to be an enormous month for Cardinal football.
If you care about such things…Louisville/SMU football on September 19th has been picked up by ESPN Radio that day as part of their national doubleheader. The Cards and Mustangs will hand off to Auburn hosting Florida.
— Andy Sweeney (@TheOnlySweeney)
July 9, 2026
—On3
ranks the top 10 ACC quarterbacks for 2026 and has Lincoln Kienholz at No. 6.
—Racing Louisville is back in town for Ali Night at Lynn Family Stadium on Friday. On Saturday night, Lou City will look to remain unbeaten all-time against hated rival Lexington SC.
Card Chronicle readers can get
discounted tickets to both matches by going here.
—Basket Under Review is looking at the last 20 college hoops national champs. Here’s
their feature on 2013 Louisville.
—And finally, the Mike Rutherford Show will be live at
Walk-Ons in Clarksville tomorrow (Friday) afternoon from 2:30-5:30. Stop in for special deals on drinks and apps during the show. Would have been a lot cooler if the USMNT had been playing at the same time, but will still be cool.
Continue reading...
