With 19 starters returning from a team that went 11-2 and won the Allstate Sugar Bowl, the University of Louisville football team is poised to make a run at a third-straight conference title and a fourth consecutive bowl appearance.
The Cardinals, who were picked to win their conference for the second-straight season, bring back seven starters on offense and 12 on defense to give head coach Charlie Strong his most experienced team since taking over the reins of the program at the end of the 2009 season.
Louisville claimed a share of its second straight BIG EAST title last season on its way to an 11-win campaign that was capped by a 33-23 win against fourth-ranked Florida in the Sugar Bowl.
The two-time BIG EAST Coach of the Year, Strong returns junior quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, who was named the Sugar Bowl MVP after throwing for 266 yards and two touchdowns. Bridgewater was the 2012 BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year after he registered six games with at least 300 passing yards and two 400-yard games in 2012. Louisville was ranked No. 13 in both major national polls to close the 2012 season.
On defense, the Cardinals recorded their third-straight top 25 defense and return senior Hakeem Smith, who is a three-time all-conference honoree, and senior linebacker Preston Brown, who led the Cardinals with 109 tackles en route to earning second team All-BIG EAST honors.
The Cardinals open the season on Sept. 1 at home against Ohio, which went 9-4 last season and was champions of the Independence Bowl.
