LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – Brandon Dunn, the University of Louisville's mammoth defensive tackle, said some of his teammates grumbled about the news the Cardinals were ranked 19th in the latest Associated Press college football poll. They expected more love.
"I guess some of the people in the country don't give us enough respect," Dunn said. "They probably think we don't play anybody."
There's a little of that going on. There always will be for Big East teams. But here is some valuable history for the Cardinals to study when they aren't watching video of unranked North Carolina, which visits U of L Saturday:
After two weeks of the 2011 season, Baylor pushed its way to the No. 19 ranking in the Associated Press college football poll. By season's end, the Bears were celebrating a 10-3 season, punctuated by a bowl win and a Heisman Trophy celebration with quarterback Robert Griffin III.
It gets better. In 2010, Stanford and quarterback Andrew Luck were the group ranked 19th after two games. The final poll had the Cardinal ranked fourth.
Nice coincidence. Louisville (2-0) has a quarterback (Teddy Bridgewater) who aspires to be everything to the Cardinals that RG3 was to the Bears and Luck was to the Cardinal.
But has Louisville earned the 19th ranking by defeating Kentucky and Missouri State? Stay tuned.
"I don't know where we are," U of L coach Charlie Strong said. "But do they deserve it? I would say they deserve it just because of the way they've worked. But we still have a lot of football to play."
Mid-September rankings guarantee nothing, but they do suggest a million things are possible. Flip back in the history books, and you'll discover that the team ranked 19th after two games in 2008 also represented the Big East. It was South Florida, which didn't earn a single Top 25 vote by the end of that season.
"If you say you want to change the culture, this is a good opportunity to go do it," Strong said.
North Carolina lost at Wake Forest last Saturday, but U of L can earn more style points for an impressive win Saturday than they can from any other game on their schedule.
Why?
Easy. Carolina has its usual collection of sleek and dynamic players with NFL ability. Former UNC coach Butch Davis and his staff didn't get fired for terrible recruiting. They got bounced for embarrassing academic nonsense and failure to win big in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Tar Heels' 2009 freshman class, the seniors on this team, was ranked ninth nationally by Rivals.com. In 2010, North Carolina slipped to 29th in the recruiting ratings. The Heels were back in the Top 20 (No. 16) in 2011. This will be the most talented team Louisville plays during the regular season. Strong knows that.
So do the wise guys in Las Vegas. U of L is ranked 19th and playing at home. North Carolina is unranked. You'd expect Louisville to be favored by a touchdown.
But a point spread has been set that suggests the public has doubts about the Cardinals. Louisville is favored by 3-1/2 points. Teams are always given three points for playing at home.
That's correct, if this game was being played in Chapel Hill, North Carolina would be favored.
Discussing gambling information is a no-no around college locker rooms, but the U of L coaching staff has already found other motivational data to display throughout the Howard Schnellenberger Football Complex.
There are dozens of signs taped around the building reminding the players of the game the teams played last season in Chapel Hill.
NORTH CAROLINA 14 is set in large letters.
Louisville 7 is set in tiny type.
Next to the score is another page of statistics that shows Louisville lost the game even though the Cards had the edge in first downs, yards and possession time.
"The guys understand how big of a game it is," Strong said.
"I think it's a respect game," Dunn said. "It'll give us a chance to see what we've got."
What Louisville has today is a team ranked 19th in the nation. The last two teams ranked 19th at this point in the season took that recognition and made something better out of it.
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North Carolina will be the most talented team Louisville plays this season.
