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There were many people who didn’t expect the Louisville Cardinals to do what they did last season, finishing with an 11-2 record and a Sugar Bowl victory. Louisville could be a team that is looked at for a national championship this season if they can get an even bigger year out of quarterback Teddy Bridgewater. He was the leader of the shocking victory in the bowl game, and as he enters his junior year in 2013, expectations are sky-high.
Bridgewater threw for 3,718 yards with 27 touchdowns and eight interceptions. The thing about him that struck me was how well he ran the offense late in the season. I didn’t think that Louisville stood any chance in the bowl game against the Florida Gators, but the Cardinals jumped all over Florida early on and hung on for the win. The schedule that Louisville has this season presents very few opportunities for the Cardinals to lose, and it would be no shock if Louisville went undefeated.
The problem is that with how weak the schedule is, Louisville is going to need to blow out every single opponent to have a chance to play for the national title. I’m not sure that is possible because you can’t expect a team to win by 30 or 40 points every time out. Bridgewater will need to throw for over 4,000 yards and another 25-30 touchdowns while leading the Cardinals’ offense to success. There are also some quirky Thursday and Friday games in the schedule as well that could throw off rhythm. I’m not worried about that though or about Bridgewater. Louisville is a team to watch out for this coming year.
Andy Schmidt is a columnist/writer for RantSports. Follow him on Twitter @ASchmidtSports, like his Facebook page or add him to your network on Google.
