Friday afternoon Cardinal news and notes

—Spread check (football): Cincinnati by 1.5.

—Jeff Brohm confirmed this morning that Ron English, Garrick McGee and Chris Barclay — three guys all with Louisville ties — will be coming with him from Purdue.

—Louisville Report has five main takeaways from Jeff Brohm’s introductory press conference.

—Eric Crawford’s take on a historic Thursday for Cardinal athletics is certainly worth your time.

That joyful confidence I saw on the volleyball court. I knew I had seen it before. I had seen it from Griffith and Eaves and Brown and Milt Wagner, Kenny Payne, Pervis Ellison, the McCray brothers.

How about that? Four decades later, a group of women is channeling the Cardinals of the 1980s, probably without even knowing it.

Joy to the world. Or at least, to the Louisville corner of it.

Susan Sweeney Crum, Denny’s wife, chimed in with a message at the end of the night.

“Obviously we could not have known that COVID followed by pneumonia followed by another small stroke several months ago would take such a toll,” she said in a message. “Even a week ago, we thought we were a go with some extra time and help downtown. Unfortunately, even that is more than we can muster right now. We are enjoying watching the program online and hearing from his players. He always felt like the players that came into his program were like sons and more than just players, and a bond develops for life. Denny has always been so proud of his guys. . . . Likewise the loyal support he always received from Cardinal fans meant just as much to him, and your passion and love for U of L is always what kept him here. Thank you all for staying faithful to Cardinal basketball. And thank you also for the love and support we feel from you as we navigate our time ahead.”

What kept him here. Those words bounced around in a Brohm-like direction as I got to thinking.

Certainly, I could envision a time in the future when players gathered in a similar fashion to talk about Brohm. At the very least, perhaps he is the guy to bring the continuity that Crum brought to basketball and Schnellenberger to football.

It wasn’t just money that brought Brohm back. Or football. Or even family. But all of them. On the posters they handed out at Brohm’s news conference were the words, “Passion. Family. Tradition.”

Those are pretty cliched terms. But that’s pretty much the glue binding Brohm to Louisville.

I’m not sure I fully got that until I listened to Crum’s former players. Until, at the end of the night, they all held up rolled up programs above their heads while their old coach watched at home.

Past, present, future. I get it spirit. Thanks.

—Tickets for tomorrow’s regional final volleyball match against Oregon can be purchased here.

—The LHL says Jeff Brohm’s return is the homecoming Louisville desperately needed.

—We are apparently coming for all the records.

Happy holidays, everyone.

—Josh Heird walks the CJ’s Brett Dawson through the process of finding out Scott Satterfield was leaving to hiring Jeff Brohm, all in less than a work week.

—Angel McCoughtry, who spent three seasons in Russia playing basketball, says she doesn’t believe players will go back to the country.

—Once again, is being all alone in the bottom left bad? Because it seems pretty bad.

—Ten schools, including Eastern Kentucky, have come to an agreement to form a new football-only conference with the stated goal of moving from FCS to FBS “at the earliest practicable date.”

—Louisville fans in the South Florida area, there will be a game watch for next Saturday’s Fenway Bowl at Bokampers Sports Bar and Grill, 3115 NE 32nd Ave, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33308. Seating is first come, first serve.

—The “dream scenario” for Cardinal fans came to life this weekend.

—Hunter Cantwell is pumped to have Jeff Brohm back in the city.

—The LEO has five things to do in Louisville this weekend.

—Kenny Payne was asked about his message to fans who are upset about his team being off to the worst start in the program’s modern history.

—The Tallahassee Democrat previews tomorrow afternoon’s game between 0-8 Louisville and 1-9 Florida State, which is still a surreal thing to type.

—Leonard Hamilton talked about the Cards on Thursday.

—You can check out all the details of Jeff Brohm’s new contract here.

Brohm’s contract lasts six years, starting on Dec. 9, 2022 and ending on Dec. 31, 2028, with his base salary being $5 million and increasing by $100,000 with each year. If he is employed in 2029, his base salary will be $6.5 million, and if he is employed in 2030, his base salary will be $7 million.

He also has end of year one-time payments if still employed on Dec. 31 of each year. It is $500,000 in 2023 and 2024, $750,000 in 2025 and 2026 and $1 million in 2027 and 2028.

His assistant coaching salary pool - which includes 10 assistants, a director of football operations and head strength coach - has a cap of $5.5 million.

As expected, there are plenty of incentives worked into Brohm’s contract, both in terms of years and money. Including bowl games, his contract will be extended by one year if he wins seven or more games in a season and two years if he wins 10 or more games in a season, with the maximum extension being two years to Dec. 31, 2030.

—Brohm answered five questions for Rick Bozich here.

—Bobby Petrino has emerged as a candidate to be the next offensive coordinator at Texas A&M.

—Tad Boyle is a legend.

—U of L basketball greats from different eras gathered at the Frazier Museum Thursday night to pay tribute to Denny Crum.

—NC State is hiring Syracuse OC Robert Anae as the school’s next offensive coordinator. This will be Anae’s third different ACC school in as many seasons.

—Pretty cool.

—The Atlanta Journal Constitution says Louisville’s hiring of Jeff Brohm adds intrigue to the 2023 season opener between the Cards and Georgia Tech.

—The Louisville Bats have unveiled some “502 Connect” alternate home jerseys for the 2022 season.

—All the nostalgia.

—Louisville TE commit Jamari Johnson will visit Pittsburgh and Oregon in the next two weeks.

—Jeff Brohm will be in California tomorrow to watch the St. John Bosco boys play in their state championship game.

—And finally, the Rutherford Show wraps up the week from 3-6 this afternoon on 1450 The Big X. Keith Wynne will be with me in studio for the first two hours. You can stream the show here or via the TuneIn app.