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Thursday afternoon Cardinal news and notes

Adam Nussbaum is celebrating NBA Draft night from Negav in Israel.

By Mike Rutherford

I_medium Virginia claimed the first college baseball national title for the ACC since 1955 last night by topping Vanderbilt 4-2 in the final game of the best of 3 championship series. The Cards swept their regular season series with the Cavaliers by a combined score of 21-5, making the whole thing eerily reminiscent of the 2014 men's basketball tournament, when a UConn team that Louisville hammered three times knocked off the Cards' arch-rival in that sport, Kentucky, to win the title.

Still, go ACC.

I_medium This should legitimately happen.

I_medium Felton Spencer spent some time talking with Wave-3's Kendrick Haskins about his time in the NBA and after.

I_medium Deng Adel is "so pumped" to play for Louisville this season.

Adel was one of the top targets in the '15 class for U of L and was the first player to make a commitment to Pitino in the class and said in a recent interview that he can't wait to get on the floor.

"I can't wait to play in front of these fans," Adel said. "Coach (Pitino) said there was going to be an opportunity if I worked hard and I just want to make sure I do everything I need to do to get on the floor.

"I can't wait to get out there. I'm just so pumped."

I_medium Bill Connelly previews Clemson and says the health of Tiger quarterback Deshaun Watson could wind up deciding the entire ACC.

At the end of each set of conference previews, I release a set of tier-based power rankings. I usually try to avoid putting too much emphasis on quarterback, but it's impossible when Clemson is involved. When I rank the ACC, I'm tempted to list two Clemsons, one that features the best QB in the league and one that doesn't.

With a healthy Watson, a lot of potential weaknesses get covered up. The running game has an extra efficiency option (and if the defense is going to regress in run defense, ball control and efficiency become doubly important), and the passing game has an absurdly high ceiling. Line play is a concern no matter what, but Watson appears good enough to drag Clemson toward a strong season.

But what if Watson gets hurt again? His injuries were disparate enough that we shouldn't assume he will always have issues, but until he proves he can survive for a whole season, we don't know. And without Watson, either a former walk-on or a true freshman (one less touted than Watson) takes over, and all of the offense's potential weaknesses play marquee roles.

With Watson, Clemson is a Tier 1 team in the ACC. Without Watson, Clemson might fall behind Florida State, Louisville, Virginia Tech, and Miami at least.

With Watson, the schedule sets up beautifully. Clemson faces three projected top-20 teams, but all three come to Death Valley, and while trips to Louisville, Miami, South Carolina, and perhaps NC State could be quite tricky, Clemson could be favored in every game. Without Watson, 6-6 is on the table.

I_medium Speaking of Clemson, this is the best possible way to tweet this news.

I_medium Is ACC football headed for a bleak future? ESPN's David Hale examines.

I_medium Both Chane Behanan and former Western Kentucky standout A.J. Slaughter have joined the local Kentuckiana Pro-Am playoffs set to start Tuesday night.

I_medium Reggie loves it.

I_medium The Brooklyn Cyclones minor league team hosted a Saved by the Bell night, and it was fantastic.

I_medium No UK is safe.

I_medium U of L is among top 100 universities in the world granted patents.

I_medium BC Interruption lists the five best running backs that Boston College will face this season, and he's got Brandon Radcliff at No. 2.

2. Brandon Radcliffe- Louisville Cardinals. Absolutely killed BC last year in what amounted to the Eagles worst game against the run all season. Radcliffe finished the game with 50 yards on the ground, but it was the two TD's that put the nail in the coffin for BC.  He has a real knack for finding the end zone, and with a Bobby Petrino offense surrounding him, he could put up All ACC numbers this year.

I_medium Rick Pitino ranks fourth when it comes to the highest-paid football or basketball coaches in college athletics.

I_medium The summer tour rolls along.

I_medium Oklahoma is attempting to pull U of L commit Baylen Buchanan (Ray's son) away from the Cards.

I_medium And finally, it's NBA Draft night, and if you have no television or no television access, 93.9 The Ville will be carrying the event in its entirety starting at 7 p.m. So keep it on the dial after you finish listening to Ramsey & Rutherford (from WINDOW WORLD!).

We'll also have an open thread up on the site so we can experience the magic of Terry Rozier and Montrezl Harrell being drafted together.

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