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The Kragthorpe Diaries (VI)

UL is my hot hot sex — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:20:58 -0000

The Kragthorpe Diaries (VI)

Courtesy: "The Smoking Musket "SBN blog

UofL Baseball's '09 Recruiting Class Ranked 25th

UL is my hot hot sex — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 19:27:33 -0000

UofL Baseball's '09 Recruiting Class Ranked 25th

"The Louisville baseball program's 2009 recruiting class was ranked 25th nationally by Baseball America last week marking the second straight year the Cardinals have had a top 25 recruiting class under the leadership of head coach Dan McDonnell."

Recruiting A Few Good Men

UL is my hot hot sex — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 18:59:31 -0000

If you trust the recruiting gurus, the slow steady climb in recruiting at Louisville championed by John L. Smith and Bobby Petrino has not only stagnated but has steadily declined in the wrong direction under Kragthorpe's watch. But before we at Card Chronicle jump to any rash Kragclusions about recruiting, let's see if we can handle the truth:

The Pipeline

What can I say about Louisville's recruiting pipeline that hasn't already been said about Afghanistan--bombed out and depleted. There's been a significant drop-off in recruiting an NFL caliber player--a "gamebreaker" if you will--over an SEC school, including guys like Brandon Heath, Peanut Whitehead and Elvis Dumervil. And speaking of Peanut, what happened to the Alabama pipeline that produced recruits like him and Kerry Rhodes? In 5 minutes of research, it appears that we've recruited exactly ZERO players from Alabama high schools since Kragthorpe took over. Why?

JUCO

When a decent chunk of your 3 and 4 star recruits has only 1 or 2 years of eligibility left along with academic or other D1 eligibility problems in their past, you're doing it wrong. And what does this say about the pipeline for high school recruiting? Not good things, methinks.

In-State Recruiting

Landing Brian Brohm and Michael Bush in back-to-back years is akin to winning the World Series of Poker Main Event...twice...in a row. But it's not that outlandish to think UofL can consistenly land some of the 3 and 4 star guys that have spurned Kragthorpe, including recent Louisville-area recruits like DT Brandon Newman (Notre Dame), LB Jordan Whiting (Ohio State), Kentucky's "Mr. Football" RB Rolandan Finch (Boston College) and CB Justin Green (Illinois).

However, compare last year's Top 10 Kentucky High School recruits on Rivals.com with this year's and the in-state recruiting situation does appear to be improving in Louisville's favor. For the 2009 class, Louisville only had one top 10 in-state recruit (#10, RB Shenard Holton) while UK had four and even Western Kentucky (!) landed a higher-rated in-state recruit than UofL. 2010 is a good news story so far though with three Top 10 in-state recruits committed to play for Louisville next season and a few other offers still on the table. Fantasy Golf clap. But what were you guys doing the last 2 years?

Question Marks

Is initial improvement of in-state recruiting this year enough on its own to say that recruiting at UofL is "on the rise" again? Or has the recruiting dropped off so much since Petrino left that there's no other direction but up? What is the program telling the current recruits with regard to the head coaching situation? Seriously, I'd love to know what the recruits are being told about whose coaching next year. Are these guys signing with full expectation that Louisville will have a different, therefore better coach?

What's the biggest difference in terms of talent the last few years? Did John L. Smith and Petrino get lucky finding "diamond in the rough" guys like Lefors, Giacomini and Eric Wood who developed 5-star work ethics and became NFL draft picks? Or did JLS and BP hire and direct a better coaching staff who were able to develop the average 2 star guy into NFL material via 5-star training sessions, strength coaching, film study and game planning?

So, back to the point of this rant: Is recruiting getting better? I'll concede that recruiting rankings are often popularity contests only if you'll concede that 70% of the past 15 National Champions have had Top 10 Recruiting Classes.

Let's start by breaking this down in terms of the BCS teams and team recruiting rankings. There's currently 66 BCS teams which provides a pretty good target of where a BCS team needs to be in terms of talent. In 2007, according to Rivals.com, Louisville had the 41st best class with a 3.06 stars average. In 2008, the Cardinal's class was ranked 55th with a 2.59 stars average. The 2009 class was tied with Louisiana Tech for 76th with a 2.31 star average, and Louisville's 2010 class is currently ranked 61st with a 2.33 star average, behind Temple, Indiana and Southern Miss. The point system for recruiting websites can be argued in terms of accuracy but I think anyone whose been watching the actual games would agree that the "eye test" proves the dropoff in talent that these Rivals.com rankings imply.

Louisville doesn't need a Top 10 class loaded with talent to compete for the Big East title and a BCS bowl game. The Cardinals do need a few good men, starting with the coaching staff. They need a gamebreaker on offense and defense and I don't see that on this team. Vic Anderson is a legit gamebreaker-in-waiting but with a struggling defense and increasingly porous offensive line, we have yet to tap into his full potential. Scott Long...we all love him but Kragthorpe doesn't have the arms or the schemes to test Long's gamebreaker mettle.

Code Red

Someone said on a Louisville blog (can't remember where) recently that if moral victories counted as normal victories, we'd be playing for the National Championship every year with Kragthorpe. Sadly, the NCAA does not recognize moral victories. At Card Chronicle, we use words like winning streaks, offensive proficiency and home field advantage. We use these words as the backbone of a football program on a collision course toward something. Our rivals now use them as a punchline. I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain my frustrations to a head coach who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very financial revenue I provide, then questions the manner in which I provide it. I prefer he just said thank you, and went on his way. Either way, I don't give a damn how many seasons Tom Jurich thinks Kragthorpe's entitled to.

Recruiting isn't the only solution to winning more games. I would argue however that noticeable rises or dropoffs in recruiting are a reflection and predictor of your team's success over a period of time and when you compare Louisville's win-loss record with the declining recruiting rankings, it paints a pretty clear picture. And clearly, s omeone needs to order the Code Red on Kragthorpe. I think we're entitled.

Eric Crawford Live Chat Tonight at 10pm ET

UL is my hot hot sex — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 23:24:36 -0000

Eric Crawford Live Chat Tonight at 10pm ET

From Crawford: "I'll have info from U of L's basketball media day and basketball practice today, and we can discuss the U of L football situation, UK football and basketball, and more."

If you've been living under a keg full of nails and haven't seen it yet, review last week's Crawford live chat which was, as Mike said earlier this week, one of the best Cardinal-related items produced by the internet in recent memory.

Jurich's Patented Non-stick Coach Replacement List

UL is my hot hot sex — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 18:22:50 -0000

Like your favorite ESPNU commercials, the calls for Kragthorpe's head have become repetitive and low-brow--and therefore, wildly amusing. After a long string of unanswered coaching miscues and the ensuing wordplay in which fans take turns warping Kragthorpe's name into a verb or adjective, Louisville's Championship Contender and Coaching Prestige ratings on EA Sports' NCAA Football franchise have successively tumbled from "Excellent" to "Kragtastic" over the last 3 years. I'm not saying this is the time during the season to call for a coaching change, I'm just wondering who's on the list.

Below is an unscientific and completely unresearched guess at Jurich's List to replace the Head Coach for Louisville Football, which is rumored to be hand-written on the back of a Arturo Fuente "Hemingway" cigar wrapper, nestled deep inside Jurich's walk-in humidor.

1. Tommy Tuberville

Current Job: SEC Football Analyst for ESPN, Assistant Hedge Fund Manager

Highlights: Won 6 consecutive games versus bitter in-state rival Alabama; record during last 5 seasons at Auburn: 9-6 vs. Top 10 teams including 5-2 against Top 5; coached Auburn to 13-0 season and won both the Walter Camp and Paul Bear Bryant Coach of the Year Awards in 2004; linked to the infamous "jetgate" incident in which Auburn boosters and AD staff contacted then-Louisville coach Bobby Petrino about replacing Tuberville just prior to the Auburn-Alabama game in 2003; after leaving Auburn in 2008, said he wanted to take a year off from coaching.

Author's opinion: Widely considered the best available head coach option for Louisville and I agree; solid recruiting ties in the south, well-respected "character" guy, and most importantly he was nicknamed "The Riverboat Gambler" at Ole Miss in the 90s for his agressive playcalling. Awesome.

2. Phil Fulmer

Current Job: Partner at an Investment Firm, part-time CFB analyst for CBS

Highlights: Spent 20 years on coaching staff at Tennessee; won first-ever BCS National Championship Game and honored as Home Depot Coach of the Year in 1998; the wheels started falling off during the 2005 season: word got out that he helped rat out SEC rival Alabama for violations and UT went on to finish that season 5-6 after being ranked 3rd pre-season; consented to resign after finishing the 2008 season after enduring considerable pressure from fans and then promptly lost to 26-point underdog Wyoming the next week.

Author's opinion: He's a great recruiter that could do some damage if he had the same talent from Tennessee in the Big East but for no specific reason, I just don't like him that much. After it was revealed in 2005 that he was one of the "secret witnesses" that ratted out the Crimson Tide program for violations, he was too scared to show up at SEC Media Days in Alabama...not impressed.

3. Bud Foster

Current Job: Def Coordinator at Virginia Tech

Highlights: Spent last 20+ years on defensive coaching staff at Virginia Tech; won the 2006 Frank Broyles Award (Best assistant coach in college football).

Author's opinion: No head coaching experience but he's been one of the best defensive minds in college football for several years at Virginia Tech. I think his personality would be well-accepted but fans want a big name--someone proven at head coach--and Jurich may have to give them what they want if he hopes to fill the seats at the newly expanded stadium; has marginal ties to the state of Kentucky--born in Somerset; former player and asst coach at Murray State.

Others:

Turner Gill (Head Coach at Univ of Buffalo)
Willie Martinez (Def Coord at Georgia)

Perfect Brownie Pan (Strength Coach, USC)
Charlie Strong (Def Coord at Florida)
Jon Tenuta (Def Coord at Notre Dame)

Chime in with anyone not listed and state the reason why you think they are on Jurich's list (or why they should be).

Not Utah fans but they are college football fans from Utah... Makes UK fans look articulate and...

UL is my hot hot sex — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 06:03:53 -0000

Not Utah fans but they are college football fans from Utah... Makes UK fans look articulate and rational.

Why I Think I'll Enjoy This Season

UL is my hot hot sex — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 22:00:32 -0000

My Dad--who sometime during the past 10 years changed from a hothead, forever-yelling-at-the-TV Louisville madman into a mellow, "there's always next year" Cardinal apologist--told me in the weeks leading up to this game that Kragthorpe would improve and we'd see a completely different football team come Saturday. I promptly told him "I really hope so but Kentucky will not only win, they'll win by a lot". I'm happy to admit that I was wrong.

Anyone who watched Scott Long's press conference after the game on Saturday could feel the emotion exuding from Long and sensed that there is hope for this season after all. Anyone who watched the other postgame conferences of Burke, Tronzo, etc...saw even more evidence that this team has grit, heart and most importantly team unity. And Kragthorpe in his presser seemed more like Steve Kragthorpe the human being and Louisville Football Coach than Steve Kragthorpe the cryptic, passion-less guy wearing Louisville polo shirts. Still a bit too defensive though but great job standing up for his players and taking the blame for poor decisions.

As was mentioned by many on this site already, the team found their identity in Commonwealth Stadium and in the locker room. Sadly, the only reason we're talking so highly of the team after losing to UK is b/c of how frustrating it was watching the last couple seasons but it is what it is. This is the first step to overcoming whatever happened the last 2 years under Kragthorpe and moving on together, the fans' opinions of their coach be damned. And by the way, Kragthorpe is not off the hook for the loss and definitely his job--he knows that...but you can't say there wasn't a promising improvement in the playcalling department. I'm anxious to see the coaching staff's performance in the next 2 games before judging Kragthorpe's performance as the Offensive Coordinator and that says a lot about how far the team has come--and incidentally how far I have come as a fan from last year.

63-14 is not happening this year. I don't enjoy losing but I do enjoy seeing a team that plays with passion. Maybe that's just something losers say but there's enough talent on this team to combine grit with skill and surprise some people. I'll follow my Dad's example and mellow out for 2 weeks and suspend my judgment on Kragthorpe and the future of this team. Either way I have a feeling I'll enjoy this season b/c of players like Scott Long and Justin Burke.

Vegas CFB Thoughts: Week 3

UL is my hot hot sex — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 11:27:13 -0000

Took Week 2 off b/c the Cards did...and I spent my furlough near South Louisville, AKA Destin, FL.

Typically, rivalry games garner a tighter spread by Vegas oddsmakers due to the obvious reasons. For this year's Governor's Cup, however, no football pundit this side of The Dave and Scott Show thinks Louisville has a chance to keep it within two scores. I would have to agree but there's no way I'm touching the spread on this one, which started at 10 points but is now up to 14 points in UK's favor. I believe the over/under is 49 a/o this morning and I think I'd take the under if someone forced me to bet on this game. My pick: Louisville 7 Kentucky 35.

Side note that may only interest my Dad and me: I asked a local sportsbook associate what he thought about the Louisville at Kentucky game. In all seriousness, he said: "It might be too early to tell but I don't think this is the same high scoring Louisville team from the last few years--are they still in the Big East in Football? I'd take UK, you gotta respect a Rich Brooks Defense". Ladies and Gentleman, your 2009 Louisville football team! Are we in the Big East? Checking, checking...yes! We still have a mathematical chance to make the BCS Championship game. If only Petrino hadn't recruited the worst 26th ranked recruiting class 3 years ago, Louisville would definitely be favored in this game, right Bo?

Alrighty then, back to more Vegas stuff after the jump...

The esteemed football programs representing the states of Boise and Fresno straight up bitch-slapped anyone who bet the under for Friday night's 51 - 34 offensive orgy in Fresno, California. Boise State came 1 pt from covering the over (52 at several casinos) by themselves which is pretty incredible. When I think of these two teams (and the WAC in general) I think of high scoring, no defense type games (kinda like Louisville and the Big East not so long ago...cuss word) so I'm surprised that the lone Friday game (garners more betting action than the same matchup on Saturday due to betting interest and relatively small alumni bases) with two MAC teams remained in the low 50s. That might be the betting gem of the CFB weekend.

A game that has already garnered huge interest from bettors is the Florida - UT game, which has moved 5 points from earlier this week with Florida now a 30 point favorite at home after beginning the week at -25. I think I'd take UT to cover in this one and most of you probably think this one will be a bigger blowout but I'm siding with Vegas here who originally set the line at 25: Florida 35 UT 10.

Last, after the Governor's Cup, most Card Chronicle readers will probably keep tabs on the WVU - Auburn game, which has also seen some movement in Vegas. What started out as a 4.5 spread favoring Auburn has now moved to 7 points in the Tigers' favor. Last year, WVU killed Auburn 34-17 but Auburn has a new coach with a more offensive minded team and WVU alum Pat White isn't walking through that door to light a couch on fire...so, as Coach Kragthorpe would put it, there's an unpredictability about this game that makes it hard to predict. I hope the Mountaineers represent the Big East and pull off the upset but I think they fall short: Auburn 33 WVU 27

Stone Cold Lead Pipe Pick: Under in UT @ Florida (52.5 pts)

Underdog Pick of the Week: Florida State (+8.5) over BYU , at BYU

Hot Hot Vegas Report: Unofficial Gambling Holiday

UL is my hot hot sex — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 05:29:16 -0000

The Las Vegas Hilton's Sportsbook is slightly bigger than my den

A few nights ago, with a little help from my friend Basil Hayden, I thought up an excuse to garner some much needed attention from the blogisphere. The idea is a Vegas-themed post that I could sprinkle in between Mike's well-versed ramblings on all things Louisville throughout the football season. The Cards will still be my main focus but Vegas will be the canvas. If it stinks, I'll cease fire...if Mike hasn't pulled the plug already.

During my still ongoing 2 weeks leave from work, bookended by visits from family and friends, I exercised a little free time to play some poker and check out my favorite Vegas Sportsbooks before college football kicked off. And if you didn't know already, the first weekend of college football is an unofficial holiday in Vegas. Sure, March Madness will always reign king but for us locals, college football is the undisputed champion of sports betting and the first weekend of CFB is where you stand to make the most money for your bet and thus stands to be one of the most exciting weeks (see: App State over Michigan) of the season. Why? There's 5 times as many games listed on the board as a standard NFL weekend, meaning myriad more research and predictions that have to be made by oddsmakers. Also, fans who follow one certain conference, geographical area or team will likely have an advantage over John Q. Bookmaker in week one due to how much has changed over the offseason for each team and the fact that the bookmaker doesn't have any previous games or preseason action on which to base their spreads.

Anywho, nothing's really changed much with the casinos or sportsbooks, except there are noticeably more penny slots which is no doubt due to the recession...the Hilton still has the largest sportsbook (best for fantasy football drafts and watching March Madness), Caeser's the classiest with most knowledgeable fans, the Wynn the most upscale and the local Station casinos have the best odds and accessibility. The most disturbing thing I've noticed is that at no casino or online site could I find the Louisville v. Indy State game available for wager. I asked 3 sportsbooks (Hilton, Aliante Station, Wynn) if they thought the Louisville game would be put on the board by Friday or Saturday (games are often added if there's increased interest) and they all said "no chance" and that I was the first one that had asked about the game.

To give you a little perspective, each casino I visited lists the following games: UTEP v. Buffalo, Idaho v. New Mexico State, Stanford v. Washington State, Toledo v. Purdue, and Rice v. UAB....so it's not exactly as if they're limiting their brainpower to working spreads on the best 20 games. Furthermore, on opening weekend, sportsbooks typically cover 90-95% of all CFB FBS games being played. How are we supposed to take this game seriously if Vegas doesn't acknoweldge that we're playing Indiana State but yet they're giving me 6 points for UAB over Rice? I can't remember ever not seeing Louisville's spread on vegasinsider.com's Las Vegas Odds page or in a sportsbook. The guy at the Hilton looked stumped that Louisville was playing this weekend and yet it wasn't on his board...he asked me if maybe UL's first game wasn't until next week but I assured him that indeed UL is playing this Saturday. That's called being humbled.

If I were to guess the spread, I'd give 28.5 points to Louisville. If this were 2007, it'd be at least twice that. Other notables: Kentucky is a 15 pt favorite over Miami (OH), Rutgers 5 pt favorite over Cincy, Syracuse is a 7 pt underdog to Minnesota and UCONN is a 3.5 pt favorite over Ohio (OH).

Sun Bowl Drops Big East for ACC's Sloppy...Fifths

UL is my hot hot sex — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 05:48:50 -0000

What was slated to be the optimal destination for the Big East's 3rd best team, the Sun Bowl announced yesterday that they will not renew their partnership with the Big East Conference after this season. Replacing the Big East No. 3 team will be the ACC's No. 5 Team in the new Sun Bowl contract. Embarassing. Starting in 2010, the Big East No. 3 will travel to the Meineke Car Care Bowl in Charlotte, NC on 26 December to face the ACC's No. 6 team. Hey, at least it's a BCS Conference and not the MAC...

Brian Bennett has more here, including the epic quote below from the Sun Bowl bowl committee folks reppin' El Paso, TX.

"At the end of the day it was based on what overall we thought is best for the people of El Paso," bowl committee chairman John Folmer told the paper. "We haven't seen the ACC in so long, we think it will be good."

When the people of El Paso--the ones that live, work and play Connect 4 within eyesight of the 3rd world city of Juarez, Mexico--don't respect you, it's time to look in the mirror and repeat after me: "I see pride! I see power! I see a bad-ass mother who don't take no crap off of nobody!" ...now let's get out of this bathroom and find some East Germans to punch.