Tough Cards Season Calls For Calm

The 2009 football season is essentially over for the Louisville Cardinals. That's disappointing, especially considering this team has more talent than its woeful, anemic record attests. Just yesterday the Cards gave up some 400+ yards to a struggling UConn team. That's unfortunate, especially as the defense has proven porous all year. Worse, the offense (once a juggernaut and the supposed strength of Coach Kragthorpe) can't generate success against even weak opponents.

Ultimately, underperformance comes down to coaching. Coach K inherited a program in disarray. There's no debating that issue. But the program should be performing better than it is by now, and the time for explanations and rebuilding is past.

With football subsidizing so many other university athletic programs, and with a new football stadium construction project to fund (and additional seats to fill), the time for change has come. But let's be civil, and respectful, as the process unfolds. Coach K has given much to the university and the program.

Dreams of a Jon Gruden or Jeff Jagodzinski taking over the Loiusville program are misplaced. Gruden's won a Super Bowl. He can pick his next NFL job. I'd be very surprised if he even considered a demotion to the ranks of college football, no less a Big East school. As for Jagodzinski, he lost his job at Boston College because he interviewed with the New York Jets. We don't need Bobby Petrino 2.0, in which our head coach interviews for an NFL job every year.

Let's relax. Have some faith in Athletic Director Tom Jurich. The process will play out. We'll be OK.