Brohm Addresses Media Ahead of Season Opener

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - University of Louisville head coach Jeff Brohm and the Cardinals begin their season at home for the first time since 2020 on Saturday against Austin Peay.

Brohm enters his second season at the helm for UofL. The Cardinals are coming off a 10-win season where they had an appearance in the ACC Championship game.

"We're excited to get this season started and I think everyone is ready for some football." Brohm said. "Our team has practiced hard, they've worked hard, and they know what's in front of us. It starts with game one here in front of our home crowd. It'll be great to get back in L&N Stadium and play some football this Saturday and have a great day. I know this is what all of these guys have worked for, and now it's gonna start."

An offensive coach by nature, Brohm is excited for the depth that returns on defense, with the return of all-conference players in Quincy Riley and Ashton Gillotte, both of whom could have tested the waters for the NFL Draft.

"I definitely think on defense we built a lot of depth on the defensive line. It's our deepest position. We feel like we have numerous, capable young men to go in and compete at a high level. Our guys have a ton of experience, a ton of production in the past from these guys, whether it was here or their previous schools. We want that defensive line unit to play well and produce."

A first team preseason All-American, Gillotte is the focal point of the defense after recording 11 sacks in his junior season. He enters 2024 ranked 10^th on the school's all-time sacks list with 22 through his first three seasons.

"Ashton Gillotte has had a tremendous camp," Brohm noted. "He's hard to block, he is a force, and we have other players around him that have done well,"

Louisville will look to replace two key players who were crucial to the success of the team last year in Isaac Guerendo and Jawhar Jordan. Running back Maurice Turner, who is coming into his third year with the Cardinals, will look to share the workload of the run game with Miami transfer Donald Chaney, Keyjuan Brown, and freshman running back Isaac Brown.

"Maurice Turner has played a lot of football for us. He's in great shape and has had a great fall camp. Donald Chaney, the transfer from Miami, was nicked up early in camp, but he's healthy now. He's got some strength and he's played a lot of football. Throw in Isaac Brown and Keyjuan Brown who are two young guys that we feel confident about. Keyjuan was a little nicked up early in camp, but he's back and healthy. Isaac has been healthy all spring and fall. He has some twitch and speed and quickness that is hard to coach that we hope to highlight as much as we can, even though he's a true freshman. He's done a great job and worked hard. We feel good about all four of those young men."

Austin Peay comes into the season opener having never faced Louisville. The Governors come off a 9-3 season that saw them go undefeated in conference play.

The Governors hired head coach Dave Faris earlier this year to lead their team into the 2024-25 football season, bringing a new coaching staff with him.

Louisville head coach Jeff Brohm spoke to the game planning that he and his staff have been doing in preparation for Saturday's matchup.

"You don't know for sure what you're going to see with a new offensive coordinator, new head coach, and a new defensive coordinator, " Brohm said. "We've studied the history and the past of the people that are supposedly calling the offense and the defense and what they've done in the past. Do we know for sure if that is what they're going to do? No, we do not. We have prepared a lot."

Louisville's offense will be led by quarterback Tyler Shough who spent last season with Texas Tech.

"Tyler [Shough] has had a great camp. Every day he continues to go out there and make plays. He has great command of the offense and the pocket. He knows how to deliver the ball up the field to our playmakers. We want him to play well, we want to help him play well, and we want our guys around him to play well, which will help him look even better. We're very confident going into the game that he's battle tested, he's played a lot of football, he's handled adversity, and he'll do a great job."

After a successful fall training camp in the books for Louisville, Brohm is confident that his guys will bring the energy in the season opener.

"I think our guys are ready to play. We've had a good fall camp with some ups and downs along the way which is good. We've had certain guys emerge some days and the next day if you don't come ready to play then you're not going to have a good day. We've stressed to our team that it's how football works."

Brohm noted that in preparation for this week's game, he has emphasized the importance of being ready to play each week.

"When you step on the field and you don't play your best game, you're going to lose, " Brohm said. "You realize that it's part of the game, so you stress to each player and each unit that you have to play your best game every time you step on the field. No matter if you've won three in a row or lost three in a row, you have to have the determination to get things done. The team has to stick together no matter what the score is and play to the end. I think our guys have seen it after watching the games this weekend and experiencing it, so you hope they have the preparation and toughness and realize that's what it's gonna take every week."

Louisville opens the season on Saturday against Austin Peay at 12 p.m. ET in a game that can be seen on the ACC Network.

University of Louisville Athletics

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Players Mentioned

Isaac Brown

Keyjuan Brown

Donald Chaney

Ashton Gillotte

Isaac Guerendo

Jawhar Jordan

Quincy Riley

Tyler Shough

Maurice Turner

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