Thursday afternoon Cardinal news and notes

—The CJ’s Shannon Russell outlines three keys to victory for Louisville against Kentucky.

—Your officials for Saturday: Ron Groover, Ted Valentine and Doug Shows. Start drinking before noon.

—Busting Brackets has five major storylines for the 2020 installment of the Battle of the Bluegrass.

—The straw grasping in Lexington continued Thursday morning.

—I will, however, give Cal props for avoiding the dreaded “must-win game” trope.

—Luke Hancock is the guest on the latest episode of Jeff Greer’s podcast.

—Media picks for the Battle of the Bluegrass are in.

—David Hale and Andrea Adelson have Kei’Trel Clark on their First Team All-ACC defense.

—The Lexington Herald-Leader’s John Clay previews Louisville-Kentucky on the latest episode of his podcast.

—Quentin Snider continues to ball out in Cyprus.

—If you’re looking for an easy way to track Louisville basketball stats on your phone, check out this app created by a Cardinal fan.

—My dad’s miniature world continues to grow.

—The Pittsburgh Post Gazette has some observations from Louisville’s triumph over the Panthers.

—Louisville’s tight end room got better with its two signees from the 2021 class.

—This kid is ready to change the tide of the whole rivalry.

—The LHL previews Louisville vs. Kentucky.

—Buffalo talked some shit during their game at Syracuse last week, and now Jim Boeheim says he’ll never play them again.

—Louisville Report looks at the points of emphasis for the Cards vs. the Cats.

Coughing It Up

One recent trend since Louisville returned to play following their program pause due to COVID-19 has been the rate at which they’ve turned the ball over.

Over their last two games vs. Wisconsin & Pitt, the Cardinals have turned it over an average of 17.5 times. In their first four games of the season, it was just 11.3 times per game.

“They have to become more responsible with the ball, with their decision making, being less casual with the ball,” Mack said. “Pittsburgh knocked us back, give them credit. They turned us over and it was a new game at halftime. I was really proud of our team’s response, but I think that’s where (Pitt’s comeback) started.

Fortunately for Louisville, the Wildcats haven’t exactly been able to take much better care of the ball. In fact, for the season, Kentucky has turned it over 16.7 times per game (292nd in D1), with an assist/turnover ratio of 0.69, a mark that’s among the worst in the nation (302nd in D1).

—Louisville football is trying to make a mark in the Chicago area.

—Benjamin Perry plans to bring superior energy and ambition to the Cardinal football program.

—For so many reasons, I wish Rajon had gone to Louisville.

—Despite the fact that this will be the first Louisville-Kentucky game in over a decade where neither team is ranked, the stakes are high for both the Cards and the Cats.

—And finally, beat Kentucky.