Bobby Petrino updates the status of Will Gardner

It's rare that the forgotten man in an upcoming quarterback battle is the player who actually held down the spot for the majority of the previous season, but such is the case with Louisville and Will Gardner.

As a redshirt sophomore, Gardner was Louisville's starting quarterback in seven of its 13 games in 2014, including seven of 10 before he went down with an ACL injury in his left knee during the Boston College game. He threw for 1,669 yards and 12 touchdowns with just three interceptions, and was entering the BC game game coming off arguably the best performance of his career when he tossed for 330 yards and a score in U of L's 42-31 loss to Florida State.

On top of that, Gardner's injury occurred in a left knee where he had already had ACL surgery twice, leading some to believe that he might never play football again.

That's not Gardner's plan, however, as U of L coach Bobby Petrino told the media on Wednesday that the rising junior says his leg "feels better than it has" and that he'll be able to start throwing in early to mid-June. So where does that leave him in the quarterback race? Petrino said "we have a ways to go" before knowing whether or not Gardner will be a factor.