2017 Football Season Most important game.

[Cardinal Cash]

The 2017 season is a big question mark for many Cards fans including myself. The way last season ended was not promising for the future of the team, but with the help brought in on the offensive line and other talent returning on that side of the ball it could still be a positive season if the Cards are firing on all cylinders. The Defense is possibly the biggest unknown with all that was lost on that side of the ball, however, with Stacy thomas and several Defensive linemen returning the cards will have some leadership in the front seven. Obviously everyone wants to beat Clemson at home, but to me, the game that will give us a good indicator of how the season will go on the larger scale is the UNC game in week 2. UNC loses most of their play makers on the offensive side of the ball with Trubisky, Elijah Hood and his back up RB, and Ryan Switzer all leaving, as well as some offensive linemen. However, they return two Senior WRs. On defense the Heels lose impact DE Mickey Bart, DT Naz Jones, S Dominique Green and CB Des Lawrence, but return their linebacking core (Andre Smith and Cole Holcomb) as well as a talented corner MJ Stewart. As far as personnel changes go I would say it's about even, but the key being the return of Lamar Jackson and a solid crop of skill positions (minus the injuries at RB) could tip the scales in Louisville's favor. This game being in a hostile environment at UNC on the road, and being the week before Clemson is definitely going to test the focus of the team. I'll give the Cards the edge on talent at the moment but this one will be all about attitude.

 

[Cardinal Cash]

Also forgot Prediction:
Cards 38
Heels 31

 

[KerryRhodes]

Id say Clemson @ home.

You must win at home if you want to win the Atlantic.

 

[Mayoman]

I would feel much more comfortable with this schedule if games 2 and 3, were in the games 4 and 5 position. Why play 2 of your toughest foes in game 2 and 3 and cupcakes in games 4 and 5.

At the very least....space them out by interchanging one of them.

Why does the ACC have 2 marquee match ups take place so early in the season? UNC, Clemson and UofL all deserve better than that IMO.

On the other hand, if the ACC is doing this for TV purposes (in hopes of higher viewer ratings for week 2 and 3)) maybe they are really geniuses after all. And I know nothing.

 

[MDCardsFan]

I think UNC, Clemson and FSU are all big games, especially Clemson, FSU if we wanna play in the ACC Championship game.

 

[Cardinal Cash]

I think UNC, Clemson and FSU are all big games, especially Clemson, FSU if we wanna play in the ACC Championship game.

The ACC championship should be the goal of the program at this stage. It needs to happen within the next 2 years.

 

[zipp]

WTH, no mention of the last game???

 

[Cardinal Cash]

WTH, no mention of the last game???

The last game is only the most important if it's the championship game .
I picked this one because it will be a good gauge of how focused this team is and if they have bounced back from last season's debacle.

 

[zipp]

The last game is only the most important if it's the championship game . I picked this one because it will be a good gauge of how focused this team is and if they have bounced back from last season's debacle.

Maybe for you. But a helluva lotta people whine about losing that game, way too many for there not to be a mention here. Some are probably too embarrassed to admit it...

 

[Rollem Cards]

Hate to be cliche, but after last years meltdown I will say the next game is the most important.

I hope the team has learned how to focus on that next one.

As a fan, I'll do the same and attempt to avoid a mental beatdown like last year.

 

[nccardfan]

WTH, no mention of the last game???

Obviously our goal is to win the ACC conference, first division title and then league. If we are not in contention for those things by the end of the season you better believe that last game becomes important. I think CBP would agree.

 

[mattp58]

I'm goin out on a limb here... The most important game is the next game... AND IN THE END.... ALL OF EM!! Last season showed how thin the line can be between greatness and mediocrity. I suspect this years team will be walking that thin line again.....

 

[TarHeelNation11]

2017 will be a major rebuilding year for the Tar Heels. Because of Trubisky's departure, there is no in-game experience at QB on the roster. There's potential, sure, but there's no proven commodity. And like the OP said, we lost all of our best offensive weapons --> slot receiver Ryan Switzer (Cowboys), vertical speedster Mack Hollins (Eagles), blazing shake-and-bake back T.J. Logan (Cardinals), tall possession receiver Bug Howard (undrafted), Elijah Hood (Raiders) and of course Trubisky.

So yeah, major rebuilding year for us as we break in a new QB and try to identify new offensive weapons to go with returning WR Austin Proehl. Defensively, we've always struggled mightily with running QBs, so I expect Lamar Jackson to put up 300+ and 100+ on us. I hope I'm wrong, but my gut says Louisville wins that one by 13+

 

[zipp]

2017 will be a major rebuilding year for the Tar Heels. Because of Trubisky's departure, there is no in-game experience at QB on the roster. There's potential, sure, but there's no proven commodity. And like the OP said, we lost all of our best offensive weapons --> slot receiver Ryan Switzer (Cowboys), vertical speedster Mack Hollins (Eagles), blazing shake-and-bake back T.J. Logan (Cardinals), tall possession receiver Bug Howard (undrafted), Elijah Hood (Raiders) and of course Trubisky.

So yeah, major rebuilding year for us as we break in a new QB and try to identify new offensive weapons to go with returning WR Austin Proehl. Defensively, we've always struggled mightily with running QBs, so I expect Lamar Jackson to put up 300+ and 100+ on us. I hope I'm wrong, but my gut says Louisville wins that one by 13+

With Fedora's background, I'd be a little surprised if you guys don't still rack up points. Kinda like with with Petrino.

So what's your returning defense look like?...

 

[TarHeelNation11]

With Fedora's background, I'd be a little surprised if you guys don't still rack up points. Kinda like with with Petrino.

I'm hoping so, but when you have uncertainty at QB, especially in the Fed Spread, things get dicey quickly. For those who don't know, LSU grad transfer QB Brandon Harris will be in Chapel Hill this fall. I personally don't think he'll win the starting job, but I do think he'll get certain packages. The real worrisome position group is receiver, though. Once our vertical over-the-top threat Mack Hollins went down against Miami last year (this was after we beat FSU and were starting to make some real noise), our offense never recovered the rest of the way. Defenses walked up their safeties and compressed the field on us. We shall see how the offense develops. Our first game before Louisville is home vs. California, who has an abysmal defense. So maybe we'll get some confidence going into our game against y'all, lol.

So what's your returning defense look like?...

As best I can tell before fall camp and the ultimate depth chart finalization, we will have 7 returning starters. It's hard to totally quantify a number because we rotate heavily along the defensive line.

Very, very tentatively I want to say our defensive line will be the best it's been since Butch Davis was bringing in all-world freaks like Robert Quinn [insert NCAA violation joke here]. Though we lost DT Nazair Jones (3rd round pick, Seahawks), our DL should have quality and quantity depth for the first time in forever. We still lack a dominant pass rusher who can sack the QB, but we should be better plugging up holes to stop the run and getting good pressure with four DLmen than we've been under Fedora.

Our secondary is one of the strengths of our team. Returning seniors Donnie Miles and M.J. Stewart both could get drafted in 2018, and Stewart might even go on the second day of the draft. The rest of the secondary is young but chock full of talent. We've got a lot of good talent back there.

Linebacker is far and away the weakest position group on our team, and that's even with our stud middle linebacker Andre Smith. Our outside backers were so friggin bad last year that we could not stop anything over the middle, nor could we stop the run nor the QB run. OLB play was our defensive undoing last year. Not really sure things will be much different this year (we have talent on the way but it won't be here until 2018). I think this is where Lamar Jackson & Co. will make their hay in Chapel Hill. We don't have the outside backers to contain the edge against Jackson's runs or your RB's runs. Nor do our outside backers have the speed to "spy" Jackson.

One final note: Gene Chizik is no longer with the team. LB coach John Papuchis has been promoted to DC. It's unclear how different his playcalling will be from that of Chizik. We'll still run a 4-3. Since this will be our third year in the system, I hope like hell we can be more aggressive in terms of blitzing. Our first two years, we had to be really vanilla as players learned the system. Think bend-but-don't-break.

Sorry for the novel. I'm just pumped as hell for football.

 

[TarHeelNation11]

As an outsider, IMO the Clemson game is your biggest game of the season. The Carolina game is big since it's your first ACC game, but the fact is even with a loss in Chapel Hill, you still control your destiny in the Atlantic.

So the Clemson game is huge. A win there gets the ball rolling on a potential ACC Atlantic crown. And, the two lesser opponents of Kent State and Murray State immediately following Clemson gives y'all a chance to break in younger players and heal up leading into the second biggest game of your season -- IMO -- at MooU (NC State). The Wolpfack will have a strong defense this year, especially up front. Regardless of the result in Chapel Hill, if y'all can go 2-0 in your first two divisional games, you become the favorite in the Atlantic and could even potentially be okay with a loss in Tallahassee.

 

[Cardinal Cash]

THN no offense to the heels at all, but if we lose in chapel hill I don't see any way we could beat the defending national champs even with everything they lose on offense. That's why I picked the UNC game as a measuring stick game. It'll basically tell us who we can and can't beat.

 

[TarHeelNation11]

THN no offense to the heels at all, but if we lose in chapel hill I don't see any way we could beat the defending national champs even with everything they lose on offense. That's why I picked the UNC game as a measuring stick game. It'll basically tell us who we can and can't beat.

I agree completely. It's a game you absolutely should win, given where both programs will be on the date of the game. I'd be very surprised if it's a one-score game late in the game. But that's why they play 'em on the field and not on paper.

Here's to hoping both UNC and UofL beat their hated rivals this year. Last year we both suffered mightily disappointing losses to Duke/NC State and Kentucky, respectively.

 

[Cardinal Cash]

I agree completely. It's a game you absolutely should win, given where both programs will be on the date of the game. I'd be very surprised if it's a one-score game late in the game. But that's why they play 'em on the field and not on paper.

Here's to hoping both UNC and UofL beat their hated rivals this year. Last year we both suffered mightily disappointing losses to Duke/NC State and Kentucky, respectively.

Definitely hoping we comfortably beat UK this year and best of luck to the Heels. IMO both teams are on the cusp of becoming upper echelon programs in the conference. You all have gotten to the ACC championship game recently and that is definitely a huge step. Hoping the Cards can take down fsu and Clemson one year and come out of the Atlantic. If not I'm really hoping they realign soon and fsu or Clemson will be moved to the coastal to even up the divisions.

 

[TarHeelNation11]

^ yes, I think divisional realignment is needed soon. The "heavy hitters" in the Coastal are supposed to be VT and Miami to match up with Clemson and FSU. Well right now, Clemson is outperforming its norm and FSU is operating at about its expected norm, and then you've added a very solid Louisville program.

Meanwhile on the Coastal, Miami has continued to flounder. VT reached the championship game last season, but they lost all of their offensive weapons (literally) to early draft entry, so their rebuild will continue for a couple seasons. Carolina jumped up and reached an ACCCG, but now we are rebuilding. The divisions do seem to need one of Clemson, FSU, or Louisville to switch sides.

And despite all that, the Coastal has the better record against the Atlantic the past few years, so who the heck knows what should happen.

ETA: I know some people think it was the ACC being "lazy" when they simply dropped UofL in Maryland's spot, but I don't agree with that. There are so many long-standing rivalries preserved by the current divisional alignment, that it's very, very hard to start moving teams around. All of the following are protected by current divisional setup and are rivalries both schools care about and do not want to discontinue:

UNC - NC State
UNC - Virginia "South's Oldest Rivalry"
UNC - Duke "Victory Bell"
*UNC already gave up the Wake game because of expansion and realignment
Clemson - GT
Clemson - NC State "Textile Bowl"
GT - Duke
VT - UVa
VT - Miami *this one could probably end*
FSU - Miami

So when you start trying to rearrange divisions, it gets very tricky, very quickly.

 

[MDCardsFan]

I would be fine if ACC moves us on the other side, having FSU, Clemson and us on the same side is just too one sided heavy.

I wonder when they'll announce the time for our 1st home game since our 1st home game is Clemson? I'm hoping they'll schedule it a night game.

 

[gocds]

The most important game is Purdue because it is the next game.

GO CARDS - BEAT EVERYBODY!!! God Bless America!!!

 

[wilkie01]

I think UNC, Clemson and FSU are all big games, especially Clemson, FSU if we wanna play in the ACC Championship game.

If a team wants to win a National Championship ever game is equally important, because one can possible keep you out of the National Championship playoff.

 

[TarHeelNation11]

I would be fine if ACC moves us on the other side, having FSU, Clemson and us on the same side is just too one sided heavy.

I wonder when they'll announce the time for our 1st home game since our 1st home game is Clemson? I'm hoping they'll schedule it a night game.

Last year, it was late May or so when they announced the kickoff times for the first 3 games of the upcoming season. So that announcement should come soon.

 

[Shooters9iron]

I think that it also depends on what the true realistic expectations of next year are. Going undefeated is almost impossible so what is realistic? this team IMO has a lot of question marks and un-proven guys, especially on the offense outside of LJ. New coordinator on defense too. if ACC championship is realistic, the biggest game(s) would be Clemson and FSU. But if it really isn't that realistic, each game that you are supposed to win becomes important and the last game of the year becomes the most IMO. But in general, i think that the first couple are important in determining the initial direction of the team, but as we saw last year, how you perform in the beginning doesn't necessarily translate into late season success.

 

[PushupMan]

Maybe for you. But a helluva lotta people whine about losing that game, way too many for there not to be a mention here. Some are probably too embarrassed to admit it...

I consider it the 9th most important game on the schedule, after the 8 conference games. With it being the last game of the year and a rivalry game, it has the potential to be epically important, assuming we take care of business in the first 11 games of the season.

 

[zipp]

I consider it the 9th most important game on the schedule, after the 8 conference games. With it being the last game of the year and a rivalry game, it has the potential to be epically important, assuming we take care of business in the first 11 games of the season.

How can it be the 9th most important and "epically" important at the same time? We must have one helluva football schedule rivaling Notre Dame's.



I think you're trying to talk outta both sides of your mouth...

 

[PushupMan]

How can it be the 9th most important and "epically" important at the same time? We must have one helluva football schedule rivaling Notre Dame's.



I think you're trying to talk outta both sides of your mouth...

I told you the exact conditions under which it could be epically important in my post. If we are in contention for the CFP when the game is played, it's epically important. If we aren't, then it's just a nice, spicy rivalry game with nothing more on the line than local bragging rights.

 

[zipp]

I told you the exact conditions under which it could be epically important in my post. If we are in contention for the CFP when the game is played, it's epically important. If we aren't, then it's just a nice, spicy rivalry game with nothing more on the line than local bragging rights.

Well, if that's the situation, ANY game against ANY team at that point would be important. Doesn't have to be slapd!cks which you've already said would be 9th most important absent some unusual factor like the CFP.

Hey, I admire your honesty in that regard. It just doesn't quite sync up with a team/game that must remain on the schedule. What am I missing??

 

[PushupMan]

Well, if that's the situation, ANY game against ANY team at that point would be important. Doesn't have to be slapd!cks which you've already said would be 9th most important absent some unusual factor like the CFP.

Hey, I admire your honesty in that regard. It just doesn't quite sync up with a team/game that must remain on the schedule. What am I missing??

It's a pretty easy equation here ... the answer is it is NOT a game that MUST remain on the schedule, because it's one of our four non-conference games. The only games that MUST remain on the schedule also happen to be the 8 most important: the conference games.

As I've said repeatedly to you on this topic, the UK game is going to remain on the schedule until YOU can find a suitable Power5 replacement opponent that will bring in just as much revenue to UofL as the UK game. Keep in mind that the opponent MUST be P5 - per the requirements stated by ESPN regarding the quality of non-conference opponents that ESPN wants each ACC team to play - in order to make a conference network channel profitable.

Until you have a satisfactory answer (a REAL answer, not some hypothetical bullcrap like .. "maybe we can schedule Miami(Fl) or North Carolina in non-conference games"), your assertion that we should stop playing the rivalry game is absurd.

 

[HoptownCat93]

Clemson is your most important. FSU is a national favorite and it will be on the road. Its not necessarily a game you have to win, but it would be sweet if you all beat them down there next fall.

Clemson is at home. Clemson is the defending champs. Clemson does not have Watson. All the makings of a season defining win. Beating them sets up a playoff/conference championship level game against FSU in October, because you all really play a bunch of teams you should beat and could be 7-0 coming into Tallahassee. A loss could be a momentum killer, while a win sets you all up in the playoff race.

 

[Rollem Cards]

I don't have a dog in the hunt, but after reading the exchange I think PUM said what I said.

The "next" game is the most important.

Whether it's winning the NC, ACC, the ACC Atlantic, getting to a bowl, or just preventing a losing season.

The next game is, and will forever be, the "most important".

 

[zipp]

...As I've said repeatedly to you on this topic, the UK game is going to remain on the schedule until YOU can find a suitable Power5 replacement opponent that will bring in just as much revenue to UofL as the UK game. Keep in mind that the opponent MUST be P5 - per the requirements stated by ESPN regarding the quality of non-conference opponents that ESPN wants each ACC team to play - in order to make a conference network channel profitable.

Until you have a satisfactory answer (a REAL answer, not some hypothetical bullcrap like .. "maybe we can schedule Miami(Fl) or North Carolina in non-conference games"), your assertion that we should stop playing the rivalry game is absurd.

You don't need to replace LPT with a P5 school, at least not in the short run. We have a P5 team on our schdules WITHOUT LPT the next four years (ND twice, Bama, and Purdue). ACC schools don't all have two P5 schools on their schedules--22 P5 games in 2017 among 14 teams.

If revenue is what you want--as you seem to--you'll never make more money than by scheduling an additional no-return game in PJCS, esp. with 10,000 new seats starting in 2018. That would be a non-P5 team, and it would still meet scheduling requirements that you allude to along with the rest of our schedule. (Wake Forest has ONE P5 team on its schedule the next four years, and in 2019, their P5 opponent is UNC in a "bullcrap" non-ACC game...)

My priority is to play a strong team home-and-away. I'd like us to schedule another SEC team since we would be dropping the slapd!cks, and I'd love to see Tennessee become an annual rival. Unfortunately, the best we could likely hope for is a rotating SEC team among Tennessee, A&M, Arkansas, and a couple others with no natural in-conference or ACC rival. Failing that, you seek out other conferences or the "bullcrap" ACC teams like Virginia Tech and Miami who show up way too seldom on our 8-game conference schedules.

The problem as I've said repeatedly to you is that LPT meets neither objective: revenue or quality opponent. You lose money playing them away, and you get zero credit for them on schedule strength. You can't have four precious scheduling opportunities each year under your control and waste one on the slapd!cks because some diehards in our fanbase can't imagine life without them. That's just a psychosis...

 

[PushupMan]

You don't need to replace LPT with a P5 school, at least not in the short run. We have a P5 team on our schdules WITHOUT LPT the next four years (ND twice, Bama, and Purdue). ACC schools don't all have two P5 schools on their schedules--22 P5 games in 2017 among 14 teams.

If revenue is what you want--as you seem to--you'll never make more money than by scheduling an additional no-return game in PJCS, esp. with 10,000 new seats starting in 2018. That would be a non-P5 team, and it would still meet scheduling requirements that you allude to along with the rest of our schedule. (Wake Forest has ONE P5 team on its schedule the next four years, and in 2019, their P5 opponent is UNC in a "bullcrap" non-ACC game...)

My priority is to play a strong team home-and-away. I'd like us to schedule another SEC team since we would be dropping the slapd!cks, and I'd love to see Tennessee become an annual rival. Unfortunately, the best we could likely hope for is a rotating SEC team among Tennessee, A&M, Arkansas, and a couple others with no natural in-conference or ACC rival. Failing that, you seek out other conferences or the "bullcrap" ACC teams like Virginia Tech and Miami who show up way too seldom on our 8-game conference schedules.

The problem as I've said repeatedly to you is that LPT meets neither objective: revenue or quality opponent. You lose money playing them away, and you get zero credit for them on schedule strength. You can't have four precious scheduling opportunities each year under your control and waste one on the slapd!cks because some diehards in our fanbase can't imagine life without them. That's just a psychosis...

Wrong, on just about every level, which must be the reason why you come up with this absurd notion....

Your contention that "nothing makes more money than by scheduling an additional no-return game in PJCS" is crap. Create a crap home schedule by deleting a quality non-conference opponent that everybody except for you wants to see at PJCS, and replacing them with crap, actually REDUCES revenue coming into the program by making it much harder for Jurich to sell season ticket packages at premium prices. You're smart enough to understand that, when Jurich has to sell 30% of his tickets to brokers at a steep discount just to be able to say that "season tickets are sold out", that he's missing out not only on a large portion of the $50+ per game ticket price, but also on any seat licenses that aren't being sold. Jurich wants the schedule to include UK in addition to FSU every other year in order to maximize those season ticket sales.

Case in point ... the football revenue for 2013 was $26 million. How many home games did we play that year? Seven. Our first year in the ACC (2014), football revenue jumped to $36 million, and just recently the 2015 numbers were posted as $40 million. Both of those last two years we played 6 home games, and there's very little doubt that the 2016 numbers will eclipse the 2015 ones ... once again because of the tremendous demand for season tickets that has accelerated the timetable for the expansion.

Tennessee as an annual rival? That's great. Sign them up, and then Tom Jurich might not laugh you out of the room when you propose dumping UK and replacing them with Tennessee. It looks like that might be possible beginning in 2020, IF you can convince Tennessee it's in their interest to have BOTH Pitt and Louisville on their non-conference schedules in 2020-2021. Realistically though, the first opportunity will be in 2025, because before that Tennessee has at least one Power5 school (including BYU) on the schedule every year. You'll have to get a replacement for Tennessee in 2026 and 2027 though, because they are already playing Nebraska that year, and probably won't want to play both Nebraska and us....

Virginia Tech, North Carolina, and Miami have expressed ZERO interest in playing us any more than they already do, and especially not in a non-conference game. The only reason North Carolina and Wake Forest are playing is because they used to be rivals before they got split into separate divisions. That's not the situation with either Virginia Tech or Miami and Louisville. It's not a traditional rivalry game. Our traditional P5 rival is ... you guessed it ... Kentucky. And until the city gets annexed by the state of Indiana, the UofL-UK game will continue to be our in-state rivalry game.

 

[TarHeelNation11]

Virginia Tech, North Carolina, and Miami have expressed ZERO interest in playing us any more than they already do, and especially not in a non-conference game. The only reason North Carolina and Wake Forest are playing is because they used to be rivals before they got split into separate divisions. That's not the situation with either Virginia Tech or Miami and Louisville. It's not a traditional rivalry game. Our traditional P5 rival is ... you guessed it ... Kentucky. And until the city gets annexed by the state of Indiana, the UofL-UK game will continue to be our in-state rivalry game.

I do not like the concept of scheduling ACC schools as "non-conference" games. I hate that we scheduled one with Wake and hope the game never happens.

Successfully lobbying the NCAA so that they'll relent and drop their round-robin-schedule-within-your-division requirement for a conference championship game is the way to go. Then, the ACC can move to a 3+5 setup without divisions and teams currently from the Coastal will appear on y'alls schedule once every other season (in Louisville once every four years) unless they are part of your "3" in which case you'll play them every season.

Just my $.02

 

[zipp]

Wrong, on just about every level, which must be the reason why you come up with this absurd notion...

We'll see...

...Your contention that "nothing makes more money than by scheduling an additional no-return game in PJCS" is crap. Create a crap home schedule by deleting a quality non-conference opponent that everybody except for you wants to see at PJCS, and replacing them with crap, actually REDUCES revenue coming into the program by making it much harder for Jurich to sell season ticket packages at premium prices. You're smart enough to understand that, when Jurich has to sell 30% of his tickets to brokers at a steep discount just to be able to say that "season tickets are sold out", that he's missing out not only on a large portion of the $50+ per game ticket price, but also on any seat licenses that aren't being sold. Jurich wants the schedule to include UK in addition to FSU every other year in order to maximize those season ticket sales...

First of all, seat licenses aren't sold on the tickets at the margin that you're talking about. Those are the low-revenue, last-tickets sold in the UPS Flight Deck, Family Plan packages, etc. As you know, Louisville season tickets have been sold out for a couple years now. Jurich isn't peddling anything close to 30% (15,000) of his tickets to brokers--that's an exaggeration unless you have stats proving otherwise. On the flipside, I'll be glad to dig up season ticket stats if you want them. And as I've told you, demand doesn't much fluctuate by opponent. We had 53,000 in attendance for the Charlotte opener last year, just a handful less than for the slappies.

...Case in point ... the football revenue for 2013 was $26 million. How many home games did we play that year? Seven. Our first year in the ACC (2014), football revenue jumped to $36 million, and just recently the 2015 numbers were posted as $40 million. Both of those last two years we played 6 home games, and there's very little doubt that the 2016 numbers will eclipse the 2015 ones ... once again because of the tremendous demand for season tickets that has accelerated the timetable for the expansion...

This is such a ridiculous "case in point", I can't believe you even bring it up... Was there any ACC football money in the 2014/2015 numbers vs. 2013?..My guess is "yes" and that you need to cherry pick your data better.

...Tennessee as an annual rival? That's great. Sign them up, and then Tom Jurich might not laugh you out of the room when you propose dumping UK and replacing them with Tennessee. It looks like that might be possible beginning in 2020, IF you can convince Tennessee it's in their interest to have BOTH Pitt and Louisville on their non-conference schedules in 2020-2021. Realistically though, the first opportunity will be in 2025, because before that Tennessee has at least one Power5 school (including BYU) on the schedule every year. You'll have to get a replacement for Tennessee in 2026 and 2027 though, because they are already playing Nebraska that year, and probably won't want to play both Nebraska and us...

The leverage we have with the ACC and SEC is that BOTH U of L and LPT should want out of the series. Slapd!cks for sure want out because they know what the future holds. They don't really give a damn about football and would rather not be embarrassed losing to U of L; and they'd rather play four OOC creampuffs so they can back into another bowl game. So you throw this over the wall to the SEC and let them find us another conference opponent. No one's gonna be worse than LPT. And if that doesn't work, you find another P5 school. No one except for IU, Northwestern, and Vandy are gonna be worse on your schedule.

...Virginia Tech, North Carolina, and Miami have expressed ZERO interest in playing us any more than they already do, and especially not in a non-conference game. The only reason North Carolina and Wake Forest are playing is because they used to be rivals before they got split into separate divisions. That's not the situation with either Virginia Tech or Miami and Louisville. It's not a traditional rivalry game. Our traditional P5 rival is ... you guessed it ... Kentucky. And until the city gets annexed by the state of Indiana, the UofL-UK game will continue to be our in-state rivalry game.

If you have quotes from those schools or their ADs, please post them. Then I'll believe it. One entity that loves non-ACC "bullcrap" games is ESPN. That's more ACC Network programming, and it's live football games--exactly what they desire. Should be able to negotiate some extra football revenue for that. Nothing "absurd" about more money...

 

[zipp]

I do not like the concept of scheduling ACC schools as "non-conference" games...

Just curious, why is that??

 

[zipp]

For P-Up and anyone needing a refresher on Louisville football ticket sales, we sell a little north of 46,000 season tickets each year. And the stadium seats a little more than 55,000. So, that's about 20% of capacity sold on an individual game basis. But U of L has to hold back five thousand tickets for opposing fans. That brings down the maximum number of single game tix available to around 10% of capacity. Nowhere close to P-Up's 30%.

And many of those tickets are in demand on a single game basis anyway at full price. If U of L was losing money on those tix consistently, they'd just sell more season tix. P-Up knows that, but it doesn't fit his argument.

With 65,000 tickets by 2018 at $50 a pop, you're north of $3 million in revenue for a home game not including parking and concessions, all of which U of L keeps. Losing a home to play anywhere else better damn well be worth that cost...

 

[Mayoman]

Hey, guys, serious question....how much does UofL get paid to play Bama in Orlando, and Purdue in Indy? Where do you find that info?

 

[zipp]

Hey, guys, serious question....how much does UofL get paid to play Bama in Orlando, and Purdue in Indy? Where do you find that info?

Here's financial info for the Bama game.

WARNING: CJ link

Appears we're getting about the equivalent of a home game for these made-for-TV openers. However, I'd be a little surprised if the Purdue game is getting us that much. Like LPT, I still don't know why that game and IU were scheduled...