2007 Louisville Cardinals football team explained

Year:2007
Team:Louisville Cardinals
Conference:Big East Conference
Conference Link:Big East Conference (1979–2013)
Short Conf:Big East
Record:6–6
Conf Record:3–4
Hc Year:1st
Oc Year:1st
Def Coach:Mike Cassity
Dc Year:4th
Stadium:Papa John's Cardinal Stadium

The 2007 Louisville Cardinals football team represented the University of Louisville in the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team, led by Steve Kragthorpe in his first year at the school, played their home games in Papa John's Cardinal Stadium and were in their third year in the Big East Conference. With the stunning upsets, the team has missed a bowl game for the first time in a decade (since 1997).

Pre-season

The Cardinals finished the 2006 season with a 12–1 record, including a win in the Orange Bowl. After the win, they were ranked fifth in the nation. Returning fourteen starters from their 2006 team,[1] including quarterback Brian Brohm[2] the team was picked, by the Big East media, to finish second in the conference,[3] and were ranked between five and 13 in various preseason polls.[4] [5] [6] [7] [8]

Coaching changes

Almost a week after their victory in the Orange Bowl, head coach, Bobby Petrino, was offered and took the head coaching position with the NFL's Atlanta Falcons.[9] Two days later, Steve Kragthorpe, former head coach for the Tulsa Golden Hurricane, was hired for the position.[10] Though five assistant coaches were retained, five new assistants were hired in the off-season, three of which came with Kragthorpe from his staff at Tulsa.[11]

Roster changes

Although returning 14 starters from 2006, the team lost four players to the 2007 NFL draft. From the offense, running back Michael Bush was taken in the fourth round by Oakland and running back Kolby Smith was taken in the fifth round by Kansas City. From the defense, tackle Amobi Okoye was taken tenth by Houston while cornerback, William Gay was taken in the fifth round by Pittsburgh.[12]

Recruiting

The Cardinals signed 15 recruits for the new class, including three junior-college transfers. Included in the top-50 class were one five-star recruit on defense, three four-star recruits on offense and another four-star recruit on defense. Also entering in with the class was 2006 recruit Josh Chichester, who wasn't able to enroll with his recruiting class.

Pre-season honors

Three Cardinal players were honored as part of pre-season watchlists for national awards.

In addition to the honors, Brohm was also named to the Playboy pre-season All-America team.[15]

Season

Coaching staff

The 2007 Cardinal team was coached by Steve Kragthorpe and his staff. Much of the coaching staff from 2006 remained, but Kragthorpe brought in other to fill out the staff, including, initially, three from his previous position.[16] Keith Patterson was originally brought in from Tulsa as defensive coordinator and cornerbacks coach, however returned to Tulsa before the season began for personal reasons.[17] Patterson was quickly replaced by Mike Mallory.[18]

Name Position Year at
Louisville
Alma Mater (Year)
Head coach 1st West Texas A&M (1988)
Quarterbacks 5th Louisville (1993)
Mike Cassity Defensive coordinator
Safeties
4th Kentucky (1976)
Reggie Johnson Inside linebackers 5th Louisville (1996)
Mark Nelson Defensive line
Special teams
1st East Central (1980)
Greg Nord Tight ends
Recruiting coordinator
13th Kentucky (1980)
Charlie Stubbs Offensive coordinator
Wide receivers
1st Brigham Young (1978)
Brent Myers Offensive line 1st Eastern Washington (1982)
Running backs 1st Colorado State (1992)
Mike Mallory Secondary 1st Michigan (1985)

Schedule

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2007 Louisville Cardinals Football Preview. 2007-08-14. https://web.archive.org/web/20070928102025/http://www.madduxsports.com/louisville-cardinals-football-preview.html. 28 September 2007. dead. dmy-all.
  2. Web site: Louisville quarterback Brohm to return for senior season. 2007-01-16. https://web.archive.org/web/20070118140708/http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=2731688. 18 January 2007 . live.
  3. Web site: Cards Picked to Finish Second in BIG EAST in 2007. 2007-08-14. 2012-07-16. https://archive.today/20120716135429/http://uoflsports.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/071707aaa.html. dead.
  4. Web site: No. 13: Loaded Cardinals welcome Kragthorpe. athlonsports. 2007-05-16. https://web.archive.org/web/20070519042559/http://www.athlonsports.com/college-football/10763/no-13-loaded-cardinals-welcome-kragthorpe. 19 May 2007 . live.
  5. News: SI.com – Writers – Stewart Mandel: Spring Power Rankings. SI.com. 2007-04-24 . 2007-04-24. https://web.archive.org/web/20070427221902/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writers/stewart_mandel/04/24/spring.power.rankings/index.html. 27 April 2007 . live.
  6. Web site: Schlabach: Revised early look at the top 25 for 2007. ESPN.com. 2007-01-23.
  7. Web site: Rivals.com College Football – Rivals.com 2007 Preseason Top 25 . Rivals.com . 2007-01-09 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070116144955/http://collegefootball.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=627579 . 16 January 2007 . dead .
  8. Web site: Spring Top 25: Dear Mr. Dellins – your Bruins are here. Sportsline.com. 2007-03-26. https://web.archive.org/web/20070408163726/http://www.sportsline.com/collegefootball/story/10089235. 2007-04-08. dead.
  9. News: Falcons lure Louisville's Petrino to NFL with five-year deal. 2007-08-08 . USA Today . 2007-01-08.
  10. Web site: Louisville, Tulsa's Kragthorpe have agreement. 2007-08-08.
  11. Web site: Kragthorpe Announces Cardinal Coaching Staff. 2007-08-14. 2007-01-16. https://web.archive.org/web/20070116222216/http://uoflsports.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/011307aaa.html. dead.
  12. Web site: Four Cardinals Selected in the NFL Draft. 2007-08-08. https://web.archive.org/web/20070818185036/http://uoflsports.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/042907aab.html. 18 August 2007 . dead.
  13. Web site: Brohm Named to Manning Watch List. 2007-08-15. 2012-07-22. https://archive.today/20120722134103/http://uoflsports.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/080907aaa.html. dead.
  14. Web site: Wood and Grady Named to Preseason Watch Lists. 2007-08-15. 2013-01-21. https://archive.today/20130121052806/http://uoflsports.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/061407aaa.html. dead.
  15. Web site: Brohm Named to Preseason All-American Team. 2007-08-15. 2013-01-20. https://archive.today/20130120020818/http://uoflsports.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/041307aaa.html. dead.
  16. Web site: Alford Named as Kragthorpe Completes Coaching Staff. 2007-08-14. 2012-07-16. https://archive.today/20120716022548/http://uoflsports.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/011807aaa.html. dead.
  17. Web site: Patterson Leaves Louisville; Returns to Tulsa. 2007-08-14. 2012-07-17. https://archive.today/20120717124810/http://uoflsports.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/030107aaa.html. dead.
  18. Web site: Mallory Hired to Coach the Secondary. 2007-08-14. 2012-07-15. https://archive.today/20120715082751/http://uoflsports.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/030207aaa.html. dead.