The Cardinal Countdown: 5 days until kickoff

#5 Tyler Ferguson

Class: Junior

Ht/Wt: 6-4/216

Position: Quarterback

Hometown: Bakersfield, CA

Twitter: None

Thoughts: Tyler was a Petrino target long before he was a Louisville target. When Ferguson announced back in December he was going to transfer after being the backup at Penn State, he said Petrino was one of the first calls he received. Bobby had seen Tyler’s game previously and thought it would be a good fit in his offense, Tyler agreed. Move forward a couple months when Petrino’s name began circulating for the UofL vacancy and once again, Tyler was one the phone with Bobby, getting told that if he made the move to Louisville he wanted Tyler to come with him, and he did. With the NCAA rule of transfers having to sit out a year, not a lot of attention has been shown to Tyler, but he COULD make an impact pretty quick. On National Signing Day Bobby praised Ferguson's preparation and training and said he brought him in specifically to compete for the starting job next season. While you can always factor in some "coach speak" during those press conferences I think it would be crazy to simply dismiss Tyler as a viable starter next year if for no other reason than Petrino’s determination to continually go after him. You read my recap on both Gardner and Bonnafon and I really think both can be stars in this offense…but so could Ferguson. Tyler can read a roster just as well as any of us can, but he decided to come here anyway. Why? Tyler, just like Gardner, Bonnafon, Pat Thomas, Tyler Bruggman, etc know that they will be given an opportunity to win the starting job. If they win the starting job, they WILL put up stats in this offense. If they put up stats, they WILL get noticed. If they get noticed, they WILL get an invite to a NFL training camp, and when they get that invite they get an opportunity to be playing football on Sundays. It may seem weird to an outsider, but all these guys want is that opportunity, and why not pick a coach who has proven he can showcase your position just as well, if not better, than anyone else in the country. It would be silly for me to predict who our 2015 starting QB will end up being before 2014 even kicks off, but I know it should be a lot of fun to watch.

Sweet Tweet: Nothing for Tyler I could find, but he is a quarterback who also happens to wear number 5. Good enough excuse for me..

Solid work Will.

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#5 Michael Dyer

Class: Senior

Ht/Wt: 5-9/212

Position: Runningback

Hometown: Little Rock, Ark

Twitter: None (Old Auburn account)

Thoughts: Mr. Dyer came into the Louisville program last season with some lofty expectations, but I guess you get that target on your back after being named the MVP of a National Championship game. I think the majority of Louisville fans expected Dyer to assist the running game by helping to break open the offense and free up some space to let Teddy throw the ball around some more. So, the season begins against Ohio, we’re up comfortably in the second half and Dyer gets his second attempt of the year…

Oh boy. This kid is gonna be a beast…

But, as the season played out we never really saw another explosive game from Dyer, although he was extremely consistent with his runs and finished the year with a very respectable 5.1yds/carry average. Towards the end of the year you could see Dyer wasn’t quite himself and we eventually found out that he had been dealing with a  nagging groin injury for months that ultimately required surgery. As spring ball started up and the summer wore on we kept hearing little things here and there from Petrino and Kolby Smith about how Dyer already appeared to be in midseason form and was looking impressive in his workouts (surely you’ve seen the picture of the guys arms by now, it’s like he’s hiding bowling balls in his biceps). I liked everything I was hearing, and although Petrino has said numerous times this will be a running back by committee I think Dom Brown still grabs the majority of the carries with a healthy Dyer following close behind.

Although Michael is currently nursing another injury (thigh) that may keep him out of the Miami game, I expect him to bounce back quickly and contribute a fair amount to the running game we’ll rely on a lot this year. Along with the other seniors I feel like Dyer knows that with all the adversity he’s been through, the off the field issues, the injuries, etc, that this is his final shot to showcase his skills. I look forward to seeing what he has in store for us in 2014.

Sweet Tweet: Neither Tyler nor Mike have an active Twitter account that I could find, and I gave up looking after about 15 minutes. I’m not a quitter by nature, but there’s only so much a man can do. Kind of like how I feel that grown men who willingly purchase a minivan have kind of given up on life. Don’t take offense; no one is here to judge you, but they do have meetings for that you know? Let’s sit in on one shall we…

(Local Lions Club, MA: Minivans Anonymous meeting, Tuesday 6:37pm)

Rick: Hi, my name is Rick…and I drive a minivan

Attendees: Hi, Rick

Rick: I guess it’s been about three years since I bought my minivan. Things were going good, life was great. Me and my wife just had our third kid, finally got a little boy, and I couldn’t imagine things getting any better. It all started so innocent. My little coupe was obviously not very family friendly and things were getting tight in the Honda Accord my wife drove. We said "let’s just go look, we won’t buy anything today". That’s how it starts. It all happened so fast. We had kids running around the dealership screaming, snacks being spilled, punches being thrown. Of course a nice little sedan initially caught my eye, but my wife was hovering around all the minivans looking at safety specs. I never thought it would happen to me. She said "just give it a test drive, see how it feels". I remember the whole time we drove around the salesman was pointing out the cup holders, the DVD player, and the amble storage space. My wife was in a dream sequence and I was fighting off all the reasons I had avoided it for so long. It’s not that bad I thought, they actually kind of look cool nowadays. Three years. Three years I've been locked in this vehicular hell. I used every excuse in the book. "it’s got more legroom for the kids" I’d say to myself. "It’s got a DVD player so they watch movies". I finally broke last Monday. My oldest daughter was getting in the sliding door on one side and my middle daughter was jumping in the other side. I actually had excitement in my voice when I said "Wow, glad this thing has four doors, makes it really easy to get everyone in". As soon as I said it I froze. A self realization came over me at that moment that I had buried deep inside me for almost 36 months. Do you all know what else has four doors?? Do you? EVERY. OTHER. CAR. What else has cup holders or DVD players…cars AND SUVs, take your pick!  There was no excuse anymore. There was nothing I could say to change my past, but I can control my future. I’ve been hiding too long. I want my life back. I want my friends back. I want my wife to look at me like man again. I’m ready; I’m really doing it this time. I know I've said it before but this time is different. Things change starting today…

I’m selling that minivan.