Wednesday afternoon Cardinal news and notes

—Louisville Report has five major focal points as the Cardinal football team begins fall camp.

—The CJ looks at how Jeff Brohm will manage a transfer-heavy roster in year one.

—Louisville is No. 7 in ESPN’s “Quarterback U” rankings.

—Homefield Apparel has just released a new Louisville dad hat.

You can save 15% off your first purchase from Homefield by using the promo code “CHRONICLE23” at checkout.

—Jack Plummer knows it’s all eyes on him as Louisville’s starting QB this season.

—The U of L men’s soccer program has promoted Hunter Norton to associate head coach.

—Quincy Riley: Not preseason All-ACC.

—The U of L men’s basketball roster for this season is in tune with Kenny Payne’s vision.

—Go To Louisville has 15 things to do in the city this month.

—Matt McGavic of Louisville Report lists his observations from the first day of fall camp.

—Not exactly breaking news at this point, but Jack Plummer is still the best QB on the roster. His accuracy and arm is just leaps and bounds better than anyone else. Plus, he can demonstrate from time to time his maneuverability in the pocket and when scrambling to extend the play.

—Brock Domann is still very much the backup at this point, and looked good today, but it will be interesting to watch the battle for QB3 between Pierce Clarkson and Brady Allen. Clarkson had a few plays where his mobility and ability to throw on the run were on full display, and Allen has a cannon of an arm that can stretch the field in a hurry.

—A quick note on the 1-on-1 period before transitioning to 11-on-11. Cornerback Jarvis Brownlee Jr. decidedly won almost every single rep that he took during this time. The only wide receiver to challenge him was Jamari Thrash.

—Not onto the 11-on-11 period. My biggest takeaway from this first day is that offensive line looks *much* better in pass protection than it did in the spring. You can tell that this area was a massive weak spot at times back in April, and with the additions, they regularly gave Plummer and the rest of the QB’s plenty of time to find their targets.

—The CJ’s Alexis Cubit also lists some quick thoughts from day 1 here.

—Pat Forde ranks the 25 most interesting coaches for the upcoming college football season. Jeff Brohm just missed the list.

—The USWNT advanced to the knockout stage of the Women’s World Cup. Barely.

—A+ reaction here.

—C.L. Brown has a new podcast centered around Cardinal sports. It debuted here.

—The long-awaited HBO documentary on Bishop Sycamore will debut on Aug. 23.

—The CJ looks at the best high school defensive linemen in the area.

—Stephen Herron grew up in Louisville, but it took transferring to U of L for him to really understand the Louisville-Kentucky rivalry.

—John Fanta of Fox Sports highlights the 20 biggest splashes of the college hoops offseason.

—Iowa State’s starting quarterback is accused of engaging in a scheme to disguise his identity while making illegal sports bets.

—The Field of 68 has some harsh offseason grades for Kentucky basketball here (video).

—If you saw something in the sky in the middle of last night, you weren’t alone.

—College sports leaders have always been hypocrites.

—The CJ’s Alexis Cubit has some quotes about Jeff Brohm from the other coaches in the ACC.

—Brohm is the guest on the latest episode of Eric Wood’s podcast.

—Jordan Nwora spent some time at Buffalo Bills training camp on Tuesday.

The summer of Nwora rolls on.

—The 502 Circle reported a $100,000 pledge from over the weekend.

—U of L hoops recruit Karter Knox will play for Overtime Elite this season while maintaining his college eligibility.

—The new stadium signage is gorgeous.

—Florida safety Charleston Floyd landed a U of L offer during his visit last weekend.

—Matt McGavic has some takeaways from Louisville football media day.

—This video has well over 1 million views and is great publicity for L&N Stadium.

Sometimes breaking and entering pays off.

—Watch list season has officially arrived, and Jack Plummer is on the Maxwell Award list.

—Bryan Hudson is on the Outland Trophy list.

—We’ve taken everything from Scott Satterfield.

—The contracts of Louisville players in the NFL for this season adds up to over $400 million.

—Jody Demling recaps the Cardinal BBQ.

—St. Louis safety Tyron Steed talks about his visit to Louisville.

—It was a hell of a refreshing week.

—Kenny Payne used the TBT as a teaching moment for his young team.

—Floyd Central 2024 left-handed pitcher Coen Evrad has committed to Louisville.

—Kian Vorster, another member of the 2024 class, has also committed to U of L.

—Eric Crawford writes about Payne and the real “elephant in the room.”

Payne spoke with local reporters for the first time since Denny Crum’s memorial service Friday afternoon, but his comments didn’t differ significantly from prior press gatherings.

This isn’t a criticism, just an observation. The elephant in the room isn’t that Louisville needs to win games. The phrase “elephant in the room” is a euphemism for an obvious problem or difficult situation that everyone can see but nobody wants to talk about.

But everybody wants to talk about Louisville needing to win more games. I can’t go to the grocery store without a discussion of it. The elephant in the room, frankly, is whether Payne is capable of winning enough games. And that’s not even an elephant in the room, really, for fans, who are all too willing to tell you where they stand right now.

It’s an elephant for media types like me, who don’t know whether he will or not, but believe he deserves at least this season as a chance to show improvement in all areas.

So far this offseason, Payne says, the team has. The group he has been working with, he said, is “a step better, or two, in the right direction.”

“We have a bunch of players that are pretty good basketball players,” Payne said. “And my hope and goal is that when you guys look at them, they pass the eye test.”

Beyond that, Payne wasn’t about to fall into the trap of putting a tangible number or level of accomplishment on what sufficient improvement would look like.

“One thing I cannot do is hype it up, because it’s unfair to these kids,” Payne said. “. . . I cannot, in my mind allow you to take that question to NCAA Tournaments or to a number of wins.”

Oh, we’re going there. Because that’s the main question of the summer for Louisville basketball fans. How much is enough? Is a “step better, or two” going to be enough?

—I still haven’t cooled down, but a good time was had this weekend at the fourth annual The Homies Celebrity Kickball Tournament.

—Five-star WR Caleb Cunningham talks about his ‘great’ visit to Louisville.

—Rick Bozich writes that The Ville definitely needs to run it back in the TBT next summer.

—Mark Lieberman and Peyton Siva both thank the fans.

—Individual accolades are nice, but Jamari Thrash came to Louisville to win.

—Cardinal Authority has five major storylines for the 2023 Louisville football season.

—And finally, the Mike Rutherford Show is back this afternoon from 3-6 on The Big X. You can stream it here or by calling (518) 931-1125.