The news that caused the biggest stir within the ever-bustling world of Louisville sports on Monday was Rick Pitino's appearance on the Terry Meiners radio program. During the interview, Pitino noted that projected starters Chane Behanan and Luke Hancock are both currently running with the second team. The first team, as of right now, is made up of Peyton Siva, Kevin Ware, Wayne Blackshear, Montrezl Harrell OR Angel Nunez, and The Gorgster.
Rick Pitino is the funniest person in Louisville. The faster everyone realizes this, the faster stuff like this will stop causing a tsunami of reaction all over the city.
You can listen to Meiners' full interview with Coach P right here.
Second on the list of big stories to begin the week was the news that U of L's first home game in more than a month - on Oct. 20 against South Florida - will kickoff at 3:30 and be televised by ABC.
There can be no complaints this year from the fans about tailgating, and no complaints from the players about not getting a chance to show out for the rest of the country.
This is still one of the greatest pictures ever taken.
Woody and Buzz try out the new game at Pizza Planet Arcade.
Jake Smith sort of stole the show during Charlie Strong's weekly press conference with a stern defense of Big East football and the way it's perceived by the national media. Smith eloquently pointed out that the Big East has consistently produced NFL talent, that the league currently has three ranked and unbeaten teams, and how it's slightly fishy that the same West Virginia team which shared the Big East title a year ago and then destroyed Clemson in the Orange Bowl is suddenly an unquestioned top ten squad now that they're in the Big 12.
Smith appears poised to give senior center Mario Benavides a push in the "Cardinal lineman who is the most well-spoken and entertaining" race. But seriously, his media briefing on Monday was further proof that, just like with the basketball team, U of L football is currently blessed with a lot of guys who are extremely easy to root for. It's always more enjoyable when that's the case.
Cardiac Hill writes an open letter to the Pitt fan base, imploring them to show up for Saturday morning's (ugh) game against Louisville.
So, I implore you, the fan, to go to the homecoming game. Stop waiting for the team to do this on their own. Be a fan, be a proud alumnus, and take pride in your school. Take pride in the football team that has nine National Championships, 72 first-team All-Americans, and 18 college football Hall of Famers. Pitt will be playing a nationally ranked opponent on national television. Pitt still has a way to go, but this game could be the difference in the Panthers going to a bowl game (or even the BCS) or landing elite level recruits that will make this program better.
Step up and do your part. Be there on Saturday 13th against Louisville.
If having a drink at 10 a.m. to mentally prepare for an away game that starts is at 11 a.m. is wrong then I don't wanna I'm sorry I passed out and can't remember what I was talking about in this blurb.
Here's the complete transcript from Pitt coach Paul Chryst's Monday presser.
CBS is churning out its college basketball preview stuff this week, which includes this list of the 100 best players for the upcoming season. Four Cardinals make the cut, headlined by Gorgui Dieng at No. 22.
22. Gorgiu Dieng, 6-11, 245, C, Jr., Louisville Surefire NBA draft pick, and that wasn’t the case this time a year ago. Dieng has adapted extremely well to paint play. Defensive monster who doesn’t tire easily. -- M.N.
29. Chane Behanan, 6-6, 250, PF, Soph., Louisville Behanan is a bruising power forward just big enough to dominate at the collegiate level and just short enough to be forced to remain at Louisville a little longer than somebody with his overall talent should. The winner because of this is Rick Pitino because Behanan could turn into a terrific four-year player. -- G.P.
34. Peyton Siva, 6-0, 185, PG, Sr., Louisville Siva has been through a lot during his career at Louisville, with plenty of highs and plenty of lows. This year, Siva will be the leader of a team with national championship aspirations. He’s up for it. -- J.B.
47. Wayne Blackshear, 6-5, 230, SF, Soph., Louisville Because of shoulder injuries last season, Blackshear didn’t get a chance to show his potential. When healthy, he’s a physical wing scorer who can drive to the rim or get points in the mid-range. -- J.B.
I hate critiquing things like this because they're so subjective and so much effort goes into them, but that seems looowww for Peyton. I mean I can understand putting Siva in the 30s based on past performance, but if Louisville is going to compete for a national championship - and all but one of these guys has the Cards in the Final Four - then it's hard to envision its senior point guard and leader not having at least a borderline All-American type season.
Other than that I don't think you can take significant issue with anything on the list.
Your calendar of Cardinal events for this week:
One of Pitt's biggest problems so far this season has been penalties. That's always a little scary to hear when you're heading into a game against an opponent you're expected to beat, because those are correctible mistakes which may have accounted for losses in games the team otherwise could have (or would have) won.
In last Friday's loss to Syracuse, Pitt committed six penalties for a total loss of 35 yards, bringing its five-game total to 36 infractions for 314 yards. The Panthers' opponents have been flagged just 24 times for 202 yards.
In its two Big East games so far, the Pitt offense has struggled to move the ball and quarterback Tino Sunseri has been sacked 11 times. Despite this, Panther coach Paul Chryst says he has no plans to shake things up on the offensive line.
Coach Paul Chryst said Monday that the five starting linemen who have taken every meaningful snap are the best blockers on the team, by far.
"I think (the backups) are getting better," he said. "I like to think that, but no one is at the point where we feel like they are ready to take over."
The Big Lead pays homage to Mike Marra by remembering his somewhat famous windmill dunk back in his high school days.
I'd say dusting is the activity I partake in on a relatively consistent basis that brings me the most shame. It's a problem too, because I f---ing hate dust build-up.
You can have Full Metal Jacket blasting on the television and Motorhead's "Ace of Spades" blaring from your computer and there's still no way to feel masculine while doing it. It can be noon on a Sunday with no one else in the house and all the blinds shut, and I'll still find myself constantly looking at the ground while I'm dusting. Because what happens if I catch a reflection of myself in the TV or something? I'm not looking that man in the eyes.
Once a month jogs that end in uncontrollable sobbing after two and-a-half minutes come in at a distant No. 2.
Former U of L and Male High star Doug Beaumont has been signed by the Kentucky Xtreme (kids reading, that's not how you spell extreme) of the CIFL.
It appears that Adam Himmelsbach, who has spent the past 10 years as a reporter at The Free-Lance Star in Fredericksburg, Va., has been hired to join Tim Sullivan in writing sports columns for the C-J.
I don't really know anything about him other than that, but you can follow him on Twitter at @AdamHimmelsbach.
A quick reminder that the men's soccer team has a huge showdown with rival Indiana tomorrow.
I need that rally towel in my life.
Though James Quick has stated publicly that Louisville and Ohio State are "about even" in the battle to land his services, the folks in Columbus seem to think the Trinity star is a Buckeye lean following his visit to The Shoe last Saturday. The buzz around town is that they might be right.
If you're looking for positive news regarding Quick's recruitment, he didn't commit to OSU while he was up there, which is always a small victory. Quick told Jody Demling of CardinalAuthority.com over the weekend that he still plans to take official visits to Louisville and Oregon, and that he will be taking his official visit to Ohio State on Nov. 23. That would be the weekend of the Ohio State/Michigan game.
I don't think James is close to being 100% sold on any program, so here's hoping Louisville's play and his visit (and the fact that we actually use our wide receivers) can turn the tide back to the side of the hometown team.
Class of 2014 superstar Jaquan Lyle (Evansville) has confirmed that he'll be attending U of L's Red/White scrimmage on Saturday. He plans on heading straight to Louisville from UK's Big Blue Madness event on Friday night.
Lyle will be joined on Saturday by four-star center Khadeem Lattin and three-star guard Darius Austin (both from the 2014 class). Five-star forward Cliff Alexander - rated by Rivals as the No. 6 overall player in the class - is also reportedly mulling a trip to the Yum Center for the scrimmage.
I appeared on the Smack Apparel podcast last week to talk about Louisville's undefeated start, Teddy Bridgewater and the possibility of Charlie Strong making a move to Arkansas. You can listen to the full segment here. I've also got a few of the Teddy shirts you can see on the site to give away at some point.
Though it certainly seems like he's been criticized far more often than he's been praised over the past four years, Pitt players say their confidence in quarterback Tino Sunseri has never wavered.
Center Ryan Turnley treated the question with polite defiance when asked if the Pitt players' respect for quarterback Tino Sunseri is starting to grow.
"It's not that it's growing," said Turnley, a fifth-year senior. "He already has it. We've had respect for Tino since he has been (starting). We know what he is capable of."
The only thing consistent about Pitt football over the past four years has been beating Louisville.
U of L hoodies and sweatpants are currently 2 for $40 at Finish Line. Thanks to Hot Hot for the...hot hot...tip.
By the way, this is Gene Shalit ghostwriting today's Cardinal news and notes. I've actually done it before, and I couldn't be happier to be Blackshear.
The 15th-ranked Louisville volleyball nearly pulled off an upset of No. 9 Texas Monday night at the KFC Yum Center.
Howie Lindsey tosses out a handful of interesting numbers as the Cards head into their sixth game of the the 2012 season.
1,813 - Louisville's last win against Pittsburgh will be 1,813 days ago when kickoff happens Saturday. The Cardinals' last win against the Panthers was on Oct. 27, 2007. Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater was 14 years old the last time UofL beat the Panthers.
18 - The first BCS ranking estimates were released Sunday on CBS, and Louisville is No. 18 according to the convoluted formula that includes a team's ranking in both the coaches' poll and Harris poll, plus a composite of computer rankings. The Cardinals are No. 18 in both the coaches and Harris polls and No. 25 in the composite computer rankings.
4 - Sophomore safety Calvin Pryor is No. 1 in the nation in fumble recoveries with four. The Cardinals have six fumble recoveries as a team. Pryor leads UofL in tackles with 38 and had eight tackles, including one for a loss, during Louisville's 21-17 victory at Southern Miss on Sept. 29.
And finally, one of the more remarkable records pertaining to Louisville football is that the Cards are just 1-6 all-time in Big East openers.
I have a feeling that statistic will be brought up in a group setting at least once this week.