Wednesday afternoon Cardinal news and notes

—Spread check: Wake Forest by 6.5.

—U of L serves up the essential info for Louisville vs. Wake Forest.

—Dave Lackford of Rivals highlights five Wake Forest players Louisville is going to need to slow down if they want to knock the Deacs from the ranks of the unbeatens.

—Congrats to Senorise Perry on signing on with the Buffalo Bills.

In Buffalo, Perry will become the first Bills player to wear No. 32 since O.J. Simpson.

—The Louisville basketball Red-White scrimmage on Oct. 12 will include an autograph session after the game. The team will be introduced at 1 p.m. on Saturday, followed by a practice session for approximately 45 minutes to an hour on the KFC Yum Center court. The Cards will then compete in a 20-minute scrimmage with game conditions before closing the event with an autograph session.

Tickets, priced at $10 each, are on sale at the U of L Ticket Office, located near Gate 2 of Cardinal Stadium at 2800 South Floyd Street. It is open weekdays from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m.

—The Male Bulldogs are the No. 1 team in the Midwest and the No. 18 team in the country in the latest USA Today high school football rankings.

—Snoop Dogg isn’t buying Kansas’ fake outrage at his performance at their season-opening event.

“When you pay for Snoop Dogg, you gonna get Snoop Dogg,” the rapper said on ‘The Howard Stern Show’ on Tuesday.

Snoop also insisted that the school’s response, a formal apology from Athletic Director Jeff Long, only happened because of the backlash that the performance received online, adding that it was a “lie” that he was asked to leave the building after the performance.

“I had the time of my life,” he said. “I hung out with the basketball teams. I just think it was more the publicity of what I did. They had to cover it up. And I respect them. And I wasn’t gonna put no smut on their name and say that they did anything wrong, because they invited me to come do what I do.

“The audience enjoyed that s—,” Snoop said. “I don’t know what the f— they talkin’ about.”

—The U of L women’s golf team finished the Illini Women’s Invitational tied for fourth place with a 54-hole score of 2-under-par 862. Individually, Lauren Hartlage finished tied for third.

—The CJ’s Cameron Teague writes about the process of making Micale Cunningham more confident as a passer.

—Being able to make money off his name, image and likeness would not have kept De’Aaron Fox in Lexington any longer than he had to be there.

—Javian Hawkins, Seth Dawkins, GG Robinson, Caleb Chandler and Tyler Haycraft all make Pro Football Focus’ ACC Team of the Week.

—After a breakout sophomore season, Jordan Nwora is back for more ... a. Sorry, I’m not sleeping a lot.

“Fans point to the statistical jump (he made last season), and he’s certainly not going to make that kind of a jump again,” Mack said. “But as a player, being a better decision maker has been a big emphasis for him. Being more diligent and solid in that, 44 assists, 80 turnovers a year ago. Become a better defender. Becoming more vocal and a better leader. Impacting the game isn’t just scoring and rebounding, and I think he’s been mindful of that during practice.”

Asked what he’s hoping for from an individual standpoint this season, Nwora said: “I think I’m going to be more mature, more well-rounded, take care of the ball a lot better. That’s what I’m hoping to be. . . . I’m not going out to prove anything or show anything. I just want to be a guy who works hard and plays hard, and not worry about any of the other stuff.”

As for the team, Nwora said both an ACC championship and a national championship are on the roster’s radar.

“I think 100 percent that we can compete for a national championship,” he said. “The key for us is going to be playing hard and having a lot of heart. We’ve got good players. A good mix of newcomers and guys coming back. But we have to play hard, every minute. If we do that, good things will happen.”

—Louisville field hockey’s Carter Ayars has been named the Atlantic Coast Conference Field Hockey Co-Defensive Player of the Week.

—Deshaun Watson is making football fans smarter with his postgame press conferences, and the sport deserves more like them.

—”Finish” continues to be Chris Mack’s primary preseason message.

—Louisville field hockey is up one spot to No. 5 in this week’s coaches poll.

—Louisville is currently one of just two schools in the country nationally ranked in field hockey (5), volleyball (25) and women’s soccer (16).

—In her first feature for The Athletic (ATHLETIC LINKS AREN’T DEAD YET, BABY), Danielle Lerner looks at the biggest question facing every scholarship player on Louisville’s roster.

Steven Enoch, redshirt senior center: Will he be consistent enough?

Enoch was supposed to be Louisville’s bruiser in the post last season, the guy who protected the rim. He filled that role for a while, but he ultimately relinquished his starting spot for the final 20 games.

This season, especially with Malik Williams potentially out for a few games due to injury, Enoch will need to be on the floor for sustained periods. That means staying out of foul trouble and in shape.

Enoch focused on his conditioning during the offseason, often spending extra time in the weight room and going to the facility on weekend off days to run on the treadmill. He has a leaner, more agile frame that allows him to get in position for rebounds and run the floor quicker.

“He’s getting up the floor, up and down, and we’re trying as a team to do that in practice, to keep him in that type of shape,” Mack said, “because we had stretches where two or three possessions in a row he’s the best player on the floor, but then he’d have to come out because you can tell he’s just laboring.

“I want to see consistency out of him and for him to have great stamina all throughout the year.”

—Louisville’s Isaac Kiprop has been named the ACC Track and Field Freshman of the Week.

—Nice video recap of Jordan and Steven’s experience in Charlotte.

—Blogger So Dear (Wake) highlights some Louisville players they’re keeping an eye on this weekend.

—Dwayne Ledford, Micale Cunningham and Marshon Ford all met with the media after Tuesday’s practice.

—The Fayetteville Observer writes that Josh Nickelberry seems to be settling in nicely at Louisville.

“Josh is a phenomenal athlete, maybe the best athlete on our team - both vertically and side to side,” Mack said Tuesday during ACC Operation Basketball in Charlotte.

“I think as he gains more experience at the college level with understanding our defense, gaining his confidence as an offensive player, he’s going to have a great career for us. Josh is a guy that I think can be a lockdown defender. He’s a terrific shooter. The thing about him is he has a great attitude every single day. We couldn’t be more pleased with him.”

Nickelberry broke the metacarpal bone in his pinky finger while playing one-on-one with fellow freshman Samuell Williamson this summer, but the Northwood Temple Academy graduate has certainly caught the attention of his teammates.

Junior wing Jordan Nwora, one of the favorites to earn ACC Player of the Year honors this season, said Nickelberry is a player “that’s going to be a dog on defense” for the Cardinals, who are expected to compete for league honors.

“That’s where he’s going to make an impact for us this year and he’s been doing that in practice,” Nwora said of Nickelberry’s defensive prowess.

“He’s an athlete. ... He’s been on my team in practice a lot lately. Just being someone who knows what he does, he just locks in on defense and that’s how he makes a big impact so far.”

—After recently taking visits to Kentucky, Arizona and Memphis, top Louisville recruit Devin Askew is still weighing his options.

—Elton John’s “Farewell Yellow Brick Road” tour is coming to Louisville.

—Terry Rozier out here looking like the new Kendall Gill.

—A win over Louisville on Saturday would give Wake Forest eight consecutive victories for the first time in program history.

—Pro Football Focus ranks all 130 FBS quarterbacks and has Micale Cunningham at No. 55.

55. LOUISVILLE: MICALE CUNNINGHAM

Now going by his given first name instead of his middle (Malik), Cunningham has blown the doors off the QB competition (by a PFF grading standpoint, at least) at Louisville. Among quarterbacks with at least 50 dropbacks this year, Cunningham’s 79.2% adjusted completion percentage is the 18th-best mark in the country and he’s been a few plays away from some big victories, most notably in Tallahassee against FSU. He’s found his playmakers much better than Jawon Pass did all of last season and even in his time this year, finishing with two elite game grades (EKU, BC) compared to Pass’ 45.6 overall grade to open the season.

—The Last Word makes the case for Louisville to win the ACC in men’s basketball this season.

—Mekhi Becton continues to showcase why he’s an NFL prospect.

—And finally, congrats to local product Lucas Aulbach on being hired as the CJ’s new U of L basketball beat writer.