Author: Leprechaun Express - Steve Welsh

“Cardinal Stadium has a seating capacity of 60,800. Many, if not all, of those seats will be full when Louisville opens its season against Notre Dame on Monday at 8 p.m. According to the team spokesperson, the Cardinals are approaching a sellout and as of Friday morning had only 1,500 tickets left available. The most expensive ticket available is $85, according to the team, the highest Louisville has had. Regardless of it the game sells out, Scott Satterfield’s first game in Cardinal Stadium will be the highest revenue grossing game in program history …. The potential energy in Cardinal Stadium on Monday night is something the players have even talked about. …”

“… Notre Dame begins its quest for another berth in the College Football Playoff after losing last season to eventual national champion Clemson. The Fighting Irish also aim to even the series after losing 31-28 to the Cardinals in South Bend, Indiana, on Nov. 22, 2014. Louisville begins the uphill climb from its worst finish since 1997 under first-year coach Scott Satterfield, who built one of the nation’s top offenses at Appalachian State. …”

“… Notre Dame is favored to win their opener by about 20 points. Louisville suffered through a 2-10 season in 2019, leading the school to fire coach Bobby Petrino. But Brian Kelly hasn’t been getting his guys ready to face a bottom-feeder. Instead, when he spoke with us today, he chose to focus on the caliber of program Louisville’s had for much of the past decade. ‘This is a winning program,” said Kelly. “This is a program over the past four years that has won eight or more games. They know how to win. They know what winning is about. They had a Heisman Trophy winner in their program. This is a program that expects to win in all phases. All of their programs are quite successful. This is a winning environment at Louisville, and they have high expectations. We’re going to be prepared for that.’ …”

“… Notre Dame returns 14 starters from a 2018 team that went 12-0 during the regular season before being blasted 30-3 by Clemson in the College Football Playoff semifinals. Meanwhile, Monday’s game will be the first in the Scott Satterfield era at Louisville. Satterfield went 51-24 in six seasons as the coach at Appalachian State before taking over the Cardinals program in December. Monday’s kickoff is set for 8 p.m. ET. …”

“… Irish head coach Brian Kelly mentioned last week that he still doesn’t know what type of team he’ll see come Monday. A team’s identity usually shows some of itself the opening game, then takes shape over the opening month. ….”

“… The most glaring flaw eventual national champion Clemson exposed during Notre Dame’s first-ever College Football Playoff appearance … was the Irish not having an able cornerback to pair with Troy Pride Jr. when All-American Julian Love had to leave the game for a long stretch of the first half with an injury. … Love left the roster for good this offseason, with a year of eligibility left, to start his NFL career. And the Irish didn’t come up with a definitive replacement for him in spring or in August training camp, when there were more plentiful options. …”

“… Tom Loy: I expect Notre Dame to make a major statement in the win over Louisville. Sure, the Cardinals are going to be hyped up for this Labor Day matchup, the new coaching staff, and the new direction of the program, but this Fighting Irish football team is legit. I’m expecting a stellar performance from quarterback Ian Book, a strong rushing attack led by Jafar Armstrong, and a terrific effort from the Notre Dame defense. This one is over early and the Irish move to 1-0. … Notre Dame 44 Louisville 17 …”

“Even for a cornerback as adept at his craft as Troy Pride Jr., the daily matchup with senior W receiver Chase Claypool is one-sided at the least and frequently more of a full-blown nightmare. … When it’s a jump-ball situation, the 6-foot-4 3/8, 229-pounder Claypool out of British Columbia, Canada uses his length, athleticism and high-pointing ability to wear out Notre Dame’s defensive backs on the practice field. …”

“Following New Mexico’s win over Sam Houston State on Saturday night, Lobos head coach Bob Davie was taken to the hospital for what Steve Virgen of The Albuquerque Journal called ‘heart trouble.’ … It was a very serious situation for the New Mexico head coach, but it looks like he will end up being okay. … On Sunday, Kelly released a statement in support of the former Notre Dame coach. ‘We’re keeping you, Joanne, Audra, Clay and your Lobos family in our prayers, Coach Davie,’ Kelly said on Twitter. …”

“To get a read on what the Cardinals bring to the table … film of the 2018 Appalachian State scheme and film of Louisville from last season to see what kind of talent the Cardinals are bringing to the table. …”