Friday evening Cardinal news and notes

—NET Rankings Update: No. 47 (down one).

—Louisville football signee Victoine Brown has been named a Second Team All-American by MaxPreps.

—Highlights from last night’s toppling of North Carolina:

—Here’s the recap of the game from GoCards.com.

—Louisville is an 8-seed facing Rutgers in The Athletic’s latest bracket watch.

—Kianna Smith bet on herself when she chose to transfer to Louisville, and that bet is now paying off.

—RIP to a true college basketball legend in former Temple coach John Chaney, who passed away today at the age of 89.

Via Kelly Dickey, Chaney is one of only four coaches to beat Louisville four or more times without losing to the Cards, leading Temple in wins vs. U of L in 1994, 1995, 1997, and 2002.

Also, this might be the best blurry photo of all-time:

—Eastern Kentucky is officially headed to the Atlantic Sun in July.

—The 2021 spring schedule for U of L field hockey is out.

—The Athletic’s Dana O’Neil reports new evidence that would seem to indicate that at least one Kansas assistant was well aware that Adidas was paying recruits to come to KU.

Throughout the three-plus-year federal investigation into corruption in college basketball, the University of Kansas has consistently portrayed itself as the victim of rogue Adidas representatives. School officials, including coach Bill Self and athletic director Jeff Long, have insisted that no one on the men’s basketball staff knew that Adidas reps were funneling money to top players or were complicit in the pay-for-play scheme.

That position would seem to be at odds with information included in a court opinion two weeks ago in which Judge Gerald E. Lynch of the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals references a recorded phone call involving an unnamed Kansas assistant. The call was not introduced into evidence during the trials of two Adidas basketball marketers and an aspiring agent who were convicted of defrauding certain Adidas schools.

In his opinion, in which he concurs with two charges but dissents with a third, Lynch writes: “In the call the coach admitted that he knew that paying for a recruit’s brother to visit the school violated the NCAA rules, yet he planned to ask “Jimmy” for help in routing funds to the family through an amateur team, all in the hopes of getting the recruit to eventually commit to Kansas because “it’s (his) job” to do so.”

“Jimmy” is convicted Adidas rep James Gatto.

Though the assistant is not named – and transcripts of the call are redacted – the NCAA has charged Self and associate head coach Kurtis Townsend with multiple Level I violations, calling their actions both “egregious” and “severe.’’ The NCAA alleged that Self and Townsend “embraced, welcomed and encouraged” the Adidas consultants to form relationships with athletes and woo them to campus on the program’s behalf.

Lynch concludes in his dissent that, “had the jury heard this call, it may have believed that the coach did call Gatto to ask him to provide the money. In turn, that would make it more likely that Gatto genuinely did not intend to defraud Kansas by his actions at issue in the case.’’ The appellate court, however, affirmed all of the convictions.

Truly stunning.

—Cardinal Authority attempts to project the Louisville baseball depth chart for 2021.

—The Kentucky men’s basketball team is on at least a 48-hour pause because of Covid issues. That means Saturday’s game against No. 5 Texas has been canceled.

—Imagine how differently we’d feel about this guy if his second half had been just as good and Michigan had won the game.

—Chris Mack will hold a virtual news conference Saturday afternoon at 2:30.

—Louisville has offered three-star dual threat QB Khalib Johnson out of Alabama.

—U of L students can enter now to win a chance at $1,000.

—God I miss Pizza Hut College Basketball.

—Big Red Louie makes some way, way, way too early Louisville football predictions.

—College Football News analyzes the Cards’ 2021 schedule.

—Chapelboro.com recaps Louisville’s Thursday triumph over UNC.

—And finally, happy weekend, kids. Spend it wisely.