clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Tuesday afternoon Cardinal news and notes

The Flower Girl understood the assignment.

—Two Louisville baseball players have earned All-ACC honors. Carson Liggett was named to the All-ACC Second Team, while Christian Knapczyk garnered a spot on the Third Team.

—Former Auburn, Kentucky and Central Florida QB Joey Gatewood — a former top 50 recruit — is transferring to Louisville where he is expected to play tight end.

—ESPN ranks the 75 best college football quarterbacks of the 2000s and has two Cardinals on the list.

74. Teddy Bridgewater, Louisville

Years: 2011-13

Stats: 9,817 passing yards, 68% completion rate, 72 TD, 24 INT, 6 rushing TD

He was almost immediately Charlie Strong’s best player at Louisville, and his last two seasons — 7,688 yards, 58 touchdowns and a 23-3 record — made him a legend.

...

8. Lamar Jackson, Louisville

Years: 2015-17

Stats: 9,043 passing yards, 57% completion rate, 69 TD, 27 INT, 4,132 rushing yards, 50 rushing TD

At the start of the century, Clemson’s Woody Dantzler pulled off the first 2,000/1,000 season. Less than two decades later, Jackson was posting back-to-back 3,500/1,500s. He was a solid passer and the most terrifying runner at the QB position since Michael Vick. And that hurdle. Oh, that hurdle.

Somehow, Baker Mayfield topped the list.

—A good Twitter film breakdown of new U of L hoops commit Ty-Laur Johnson starts here.

—The Louisville softball team’s season ended with a 1-2 performance in the Knoxville Regional over the weekend.

—No. 3 overall class seems good.

—With one year to go until major championship golf returns to Louisville, Eric Crawford has five things to know about the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla.

—While other Power 5 conferences are making moves, the ACC is watching and waiting.

—Matt McGavic breaks down Ty-Laur Johnson’s game here.

—The latest shooting in Louisville was reportedly over a Hot Pocket.

—College hoops coaches talk anonymously to On3 about the newfound struggle of trying to deal with the transfer portal and NIL.

“I think the obvious change with recruiting in the portal is you must have NIL, even for the marginal players,” a coach in the SEC told On3. “A large percentage of why these kids are transferring is because they want more NIL, whether that is going from zero to something or going to a school that has more resources than their current situation.”

“You know you can’t win with freshmen, but you can’t afford a roster of good transfers,” a coach in the Big 12 said. “So you have to go out and find that sweet spot every year. Each cycle, you can only take two or three high school kids, but because they come cheaper, you have to take two or three. You just can’t take more than three of four transfers without breaking the bank.”

As much as it can be the elephant in the room, NIL is a conversation that college coaches know they need to approach during the recruiting process with transfers.

“Honestly, when I speak to a kid for the first time, and I don’t bring it up,” a coach in the SEC said, “and they don’t bring it up, it doesn’t mean they’re not about NIL, it simply means they’re not going to answer my call the next time. Twenty or more other schools are willing and ready to initiate the NIL conversation immediately.”

“I still build my relationships with the players and their circles,” an SEC coach said. “But I know we’re not getting a kid unless we have the NIL in place. The relationships still matter, and they will get you to the table, but you better have something to offer. How much you need is a case-by-case situation, and that is where the relationships help you navigate, but it is always something.”

—ACC legend Carmelo Anthony has called it a career.

—Louisville men’s tennis standout Etienne Donnet lost to Michigan’s Andrew Fenty in three sets in the first round of the NCAA Singles Championship Monday afternoon.

—Kent Taylor is getting back in the sportscaster game and joining the team at WLKY.

—We have our first line for the first game of the Jeff Brohm era, and the Cards are an 8.5-point favorite.

—A total of 510 U of L athletes ended the spring semester on the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll.

—Rest easy, Kentucky fan terrorists: John Higgins is retiring from on-court officiating.

—Congrats to Tyler Greever, who’s leaving WHAS to take the job as the sports director for WDRB.

—CBS looks at the next wave of college football coordinators who are poised to become head coaches.

—I thought “slightly optimistic” would win this poll, but I did not think it would be this lopsided. It’s safe to say Kenny Payne and the staff have successfully recaptured the fan base’s attention over the last two months.

Now, step two looms.

—Michigan LB Montele Johnson has Louisville in his final five schools. The Cards are joined by West Virginia, Rutgers, Boston College and Kansas.

—The Indiana staff’s attention to detail wound up being the deciding factor in landing 5-star talent Mackenzie Mgbako.

—U of L and partners have been awarded $1 million to launch a new coalition aimed at cementing the region’s role as a leader in next-generation manufacturing.

—The best.

—Louisville Report takes an updated look at the U of L men’s basketball roster for next season.

—Big Red Louie interviewed Koron Davis’ head coach at Los Angeles Southwest College.

—The latest Cardinal Authority podcast analyzes the finalized U of L men’s basketball roster.

—And finally, new U of L linebacker commit Trent Carter talked about why he picked Louisville here.