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Thursday afternoon Cardinal news and notes

Mark Brohm and Bob Zepplin are making sure that Lisbon is fully aware of what Lamar Jackson is doing.

By Mike Rutherford

I_medium Spread check: Louisville by 26.5.

I_medium Good news for Louisville safety Chucky Williams, who Bobby Petrino says returned to practice on Tuesday.

I_medium Somewhat shockingly, Louisville-Marshall still is not sold out.

I_medium I just got my tickets for the Clemson game, and somehow in the last two years I did something to get downgraded from the second-to-last row to the VERY last row. If you're up there too, let's make it a party.

I_medium ESPN's David Hale just picked Louisville to beat Marshall by 103.

I_medium The man is shooting insanely hard to be my new best friend.

I_medium Players have been dropping the football just short of the goalline for at least a decade now, and that's really, really dumb.

I_medium SB Nation's Bud Elliott likes Marshall to cover the current 27-point spread against the Cards on Saturday.

I_medium Marshall has spent no time this week thinking about the loss to Akron. It's been all about the dream of shocking a top five team on your home field.

"This is the chance you dream about from the time you were 2 or 3 years old playing ball in the backyard," Holliday said at a Monday news conference. "It's the opportunity to play in a situation like this - the national stage - against the No. 3 team in America. You dream about those opportunities and you have to prepare for them when the time comes."

Marshall offensive coordinator Bill Legg said these opportunities are few and far between - especially for a Group of Five conference opponent to host a Power 5 conference opponent that is ranked in the top 5 nationally.

"There's not a lot of times that you get to play against a team that's a top-10 team, a top-5 team that's as hot as ... what they are right now. So you should be excited about that opportunity," Legg said. "I know that I am (excited), and hopefully that rubs off on all our players that the coaches are and they will be equally as excited.

"I think they will be (excited) to see the stadium full. Hopefully, it's at least 90 percent green and white."

I_medium Jeff Nunn over at Cardinal Sports Zone covers the story of the U of L program and fan base adopting 7-year-old superfan Bryson Betts, who just underwent successful brain surgery.

I_medium This is actually me and some high school friends after having some awful Bacardi drinks in 2002.

I_medium Shockingly, Drake is now a diehard Alabama football fan.

I_medium ESPN and Nike are combining to put together the biggest early season college basketball tournament ever during Thanksgiving Week, 2017.

Nike founder Phil Knight is getting the best 80th birthday party ever. ESPN has announced the Phil Knight Invitational, a new 16-team college basketball event coming to Portland, Ore. during Thanksgiving week in 2017. It looks like the most loaded early season field the sport has ever seen.

Duke, North Carolina, Michigan State, UConn, Texas, Ohio State, Georgetown, Oklahoma, Oregon, Gonzaga, Stanford, Florida, Arkansas, Butler, Portland, and Portland State have all been confirmed for the event. For those scoring at home, yes, every team competing is a Nike school.

There will be two eight-team tournaments taking place at the Moda Center and Veterans Memorial Coliseum. The event also includes a consolation bracket, so each team is guaranteed to play three games. At the end, each tournament will crown a champion.

The programs in this field have combined for 89 Final Four appearances and 13 national championships. The event is being promoted as a celebration of Knight ahead of his 80th birthday on Feb. 24, 2018.

Whatever. We were already doing something with Kansas and Indiana that weekend anyway.

I_medium The ACC is looking solid right now, but don't worry, a three-way tie in the Atlantic (or Coastal) probabl isn't going to happen.

I_medium Oregon is wearing uniforms this weekend designed to make them look like actual Ducks. I am more than ready for this "we're going to make Louisville our Oregon" thing to start happening, adidas.

I_medium You done messed up and you know it, Big 12.

I_medium Tomahawk Nation explores just how much blame should be assigned to the FSU offensive line for what happened last Saturday.

I_medium ESPN breaks down tonight's big tilt between Clemson and Georgia Tech.

I_medium I am not tired of seeing stuff like this yet. Not even close.

I_medium Bill Connelly's "Podcast Ain't Played Nobody" talks about the Louisville blueprint.

I_medium Marshall is the latest team struggling to find some way to emulate Lamar Jackson in practice.

"We're trying to make it work the best we can," Marshall defensive coordinator Chuck Heater said with a wry smile.

Those players are junior wide receiver Tyre Brady and true freshman quarterback D.J. Phillips.

Because of NCAA transfer rules, Brady cannot play for Marshall's football team in the 2016 season. Yet this week, Brady is one of the most important players on the field for the Herd.

Brady has drawn the assignment of emulating the running abilities of Jackson in practice this week - no small task, considering Jackson is second in the nation in rushing and is averaging nearly 9.5 yards per carry.

Brady is a 6-foot-3, 200-pound wide receiver who transferred to Marshall from the University of Miami and possesses those similar skills in speed, body type and stride, according to Heater.

"We need to see that kind of athlete at that position this week to have some sense of what we are dealing with," Heater said. "Big guy like that, strong, fast. I think he (Brady) is very similar kind of guy. You like to have him run that offense."

While Brady lined up in the traditional quarterback position and ran parts of the offense with the underneath throws to give the Herd defense a glimpse of what it will see, Phillips took care of the deep throwing portion of the scout scheme.

I_medium Elvis Dumervil has returned to practice for the Ravens.

I_medium Who is the best sophomore college football player in the country? You don't have to click this link to guess correctly.

I_medium The entire city at work this week:

I_medium The U of L women's soccer team is back in action tonight on the road against No. 7 Duke. Here's your preview.

I_medium Another cool new in-stadium angle of the Lamar leap from two weeks ago.

I_medium The seventh-ranked Cardinal field hockey team takes on No. 14 Wake Forest tomorrow at 7 p.m.

I_medium Limiting mistakes will be a big key for Marshall Saturday night .... and for Louisville, too, but that's not what the article focuses on.

I_medium Ian Klarer kills it as always.

I_medium U of L QB commit Malik Cunningham's midseason highlights are here.

I_medium ACCSports.com wonders aloud if the Louisville defense is getting enough credit.

I_medium A Marshall website recounts the biggest upsets in Thundering Herd history, a list which would have to revamped if the Cardinals fall in Huntington Saturday night.

I_medium Sports Direct Inc. predicts a 66-31 Louisville victory Saturday.

I_medium And finally, beat Marshall.

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