Tuesday afternoon Cardinal news and notes

—Spread check: Lipscomb by 1.

—After a record-setting season, Louisville punter Mark Vassett is entering the transfer portal.

—Former Louisville RB Trevion Cooley is transferring to Georgia Tech, which means the Cardinals will see him again in the 2023 season-opener for both teams.

—Jeff Brohm will host a National Signing Day radio show on Wednesday night.

University of Louisville head football coach Jeff Brohm will conduct a radio show on Wednesday night at the Fern Creek Rooster’s location (5338 Bardstown Rd) to discuss the 2023 National Signing Day Class.

Paul Rogers, the “Voice of the Cards, and Jody Demling will air the show from 6-7 p.m. on 93.9 FM The Ville and 970 AM WGTK. Demling also will broadcast the Cardinal Insider from the same location with a member of the football staff from 7-8 p.m.

Brohm will discuss the recruiting class in-depth and other football related topics since being named head coach on Dec. 8.

The first 50 people in attendance will receive a free UofL Football T-shirt.

Brohm will also hold a NSD press conference and take questions from the media at 3 p.m. on Wednesday.

—The Louisville volleyball team ends its season at No. 2 in the final coaches poll, the highest postseason ranking in program history.

—The U of L women’s basketball team faces DePaul in Chicago on Wednesday night. Here’s a preview.

—Caleb Chandler did not mince words after the Fenway Bowl win.

—Louisville has seen a “profound spike” in season ticket sales since the hiring of Jeff Brohm.

—Here’s a look at how former the Cards in the NFL performed in week 15.

—Five-star class of 2024 prospect Karter Knox talks about his recent visits to both Louisville and Kentucky.

While playing at the City of Palms Classic in Fort Myers, Louisville assistant coach Nolan Smith made a trip down to Florida to see Karter play, making it known he’s a priority recruit for the ‘Cards.

“It’s pretty good,” Knox said of his relationship with Smith. “I just went on a visit to Louisville, so yeah, it was a pretty good atmosphere and everything. Good coaching staff. It was great.”

Karter also has a long-standing relationship with Louisville head coach Kenny Payne.

“We have a pretty good relationship,” he says. “Because he was with Kevin at Kentucky and in New York (Knicks).”

In a previous interview, Karter spoke highly of KP.

“When I was a kid, I used to look up to him and he would always treat me well,” Karter said of Kenny Payne. “We would treat each other like family. He was close with Kevin (Knox) so he was close with me. (Kenny Payne) is a good coach and a good person, a hardworking coach. I’m really glad to see him with the head coaching job.”

—Donovan Mitchell has been named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week.

—Mitchell is also making headlines today for saying for the first time that the racial issues he experienced in Utah were “draining” during his time with the Jazz. Mitchell and the Cavs play in Salt Lake City for the first time on Jan. 10.

—The battle between Louisville and Texas for DeAndre Moore will apparently go down to the wire on Wednesday. Chad Simmons of On3 logged a new crystal ball prediction on Monday of the Longhorns for Moore.

If Jeff Brohm is somehow able to keep Moore, it will be a massive early victory for the new regime.

—Did they forget someone?

—Highlights from the U of L women’s basketball team’s ACC-opening win over Pitt are here.

—Kentucky got its QB for 2023 in NC State transfer Devin Leary. The 2022 preseason ACC Player of the Year is certainly a big get for the Cats.

—USA Today has named Lights Under Louisville as one of the 10 best holiday lights displays in the country.

—Jeff Greer’s latest U of L hoops newsletter focuses on the Cards’ win over Florida A&M.

Just a few days ago, after Louisville’s win over Western Kentucky, we discussed in this newsletter the importance of the Cards navigating a different scenario. When they don’t play well — when they shoot poorly and have to labor through a game — can they still win?

We’ve now seen what it looks like when Louisville shoots 50+% from the field and makes 19 of 20 from the foul line while (somewhat) reducing turnovers. The big step for this team will be winning a game when the shots aren’t falling. Can Louisville find ways to string together stops that help them grind out wins? The lack of offensive cohesion, until Wednesday night, really impacted the defense. U of L has to figure out how to defend at a high level, get its easy baskets from putbacks on the offensive glass and scratch and claw.

Louisville did that on Saturday, shooting just 42% from the field (3 of 14 from 3) and turning the ball over on 34.4% of its possessions … and winning. Yes, it was ugly. Very ugly. And it was against one of the worst teams in the country. But five days ago the Cards were 0-9 and had lost six straight by 19 or more points — you take the wins however you get ‘em.

The bottom line is, Louisville desperately needed some good news, and this week’s performances delivered that. Two wins against two very different opponents slowed what was profuse bleeding for the program. As I said in Thursday’s letter, my larger-picture opinion hasn’t changed a whole lot about the state of the program, but a couple wins and a couple decent performances in terms of effort — both very welcome for Louisville and perhaps encouraging signs of life.

—Class of 2026 hoops star Tyran Stokes says the fact that he grew up in Louisville certainly helps U of L’s chances of landing his services one day.

—Josh Heird is aiming for “new heights” with the Louisville football program.

—Clearopathra is the winner here for me.

—RIP to “Mr. Perfect,” Tom Browning, who passed away Monday at the age of 62.

—Here’s the AP preview of Louisville vs. Lipscomb.

—Cincinnati’s Fansided site takes a statistical look at Louisville’s Fenway Bowl beatdown of the Bearcats.

—Beast.

—Louisville LB Allen Smith, who played almost entirely on special teams during his time at U of L, has entered the transfer portal.

—Matt McGavic is predicting a 3-point Lipscomb victory tonight.

—And finally, the Mike Rutherford Show is back from 3-6 this afternoon on 1450/96.1 The Big X, getting you ready for the Cards vs. the Bisons at 6 p.m. You can stream the show here.