LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The wait continues for a firm launch date for legalized sports betting in Kentucky. But the games and Las Vegas wait for nobody.
Pennies are lost without the opportunity to bet on whether Elly De La Cruz will lead the Cincinnati Reds to the National League Central title. King-sized dollars are lost waiting for the chance to bet on football.
There is chatter that the goal is to start the wagering fun by Sept. 7, the opening of the NFL season. But, like I said, the oddsmakers wait for nobody.
A topic certain to be supremely popular with local fans is wagering on the regular-season win totals for college football teams.
Las Vegas set its numbers weeks ago. Now is a good time to consider a reasonable wager for Louisville, Kentucky, Indiana and Western Kentucky.
I looked at the DraftKings' over/under board earlier this week and asked for reader participation. Nearly 450 of you responded.
Tuesday question: The @DraftKings over/under for Louisville football victories for this regular season is 8.
— rickbozich (@rickbozich) June 27, 2023
The results were what I expected: The largest pocket of fans believe coach Jeff Brohm's first U of L team will win eight games, which is precisely where oddsmakers set the number.
Don't sneeze at eight wins. The last time the Cards eclipsed eight regular-season games (bowls don't count) was 2016, the year Lamar Jackson won the Heisman Trophy.
There is much to like about Louisville's schedule. The Cards have seven home games. An eighth game, against Indiana at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, is likely to feature more Cards' fans than IU fans.
Playing Georgia Tech off campus at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta for the season opener Sept. 1 is unlikely to be a daunting environment.
The Yellow Jackets ranked 61st in the nation and 11th in the ACC in average home attendance in 2022 at 36,625 per game. Mercedes-Benz Stadium seats 71,000. I'm not expecting Death Valley working conditions.
Speaking of playing Clemson in Death Valley, the Cardinals get a break from seeing Dabo Swinney and his cast of four- and five-star recruits this fall,
Florida State has also disappeared from the schedule. North Carolina and Mack Brown are missing.
The Tigers, Seminoles and Tar Heels are the top three teams in the ACC in the power poll at Phil Steele's college football yearbook as well as in Steele's personal top-60 teams.
Steele ranked Clemson No. 2, Florida State No. 8 and UNC No. 21 (with U of L No. 53).
So how many games will the Cards win?
Put me down for eight.
Murray State starts my list in the win column. Home opener (Sept. 7) against an FCS program that finished 2-9 last season while getting outscored, 405-167? Check, please.
Actually, I've got the Cards winning their first four. Georgia Tech has posted four consecutive losing seasons. The Yellow Jackets lost their quarterback Jeff Sims to Nebraska.
His replacement is Haynes King, who was a big recruit and a big flop for Jimbo Fisher at Texas A&M. He completed 56.6% of his passes with 10 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in three seasons. Not believing the hype.
U of L will play a team with a more uncertain quarterback situation in game three against Tom Allen and Indiana. The Hoosiers have won two games against Power 5 opponents the last two seasons.
The final step to 4-0 will be a home victory over Boston College. The two players primarily responsible for BC defeating Louisville last season — quarterback Phil Jurkovec and receiver Zay Flowers — are gone.
Game five will determine if Louisville has a sensational season — a Friday night (Sept. 29) visit to North Carolina State.
Although the Wolfpack lost their quarterback Devin Leary to Kentucky and the Cards beat N.C. State at home last season, Dave Doeren is a solid, veteran coach.
Doeren made two excellent moves to upgrade his offense, taking Virginia quarterback Brennan Armstrong from the transfer portal and then teaming him with offensive coordinator Robert Anae. Anae coached Armstrong at Virginia in 2021 when he led the ACC in passing at 404.5 yards per game.
In Raleigh, give me N.C. State, which usually plays solid defense.
That brings us to the Cards' game of the year — Notre Dame's second trip ever to L&N Cardinal Stadium on Oct. 7. The Irish are consensus preseason on Top 15 team.
Quarterback Sam Hartman left Wake Forest for Notre Dame. He might have played the worst game of his life last season against Louisville when he threw three interceptions and lost three fumbles. The record shows that Hartman is an excellent QB who will have more tools than he had last season.
Notre Dame in a close one.
Pittsburgh has won 20 of 27 games the last two seasons. Pat Narduzzi has established a winning culture over his first eight seasons. He fetched Jurkovec from BC to play quarterback, and Steele ranks Pittsburgh “a legitimate contender in the ACC.”
Make it 4-3.
Hold the nasty emails and tweets.
The Cards will roar back to win the next three: beating Duke, Virginia Tech and Virginia at home to climb to 7-3 and Top 25 consideration.
Where will the eighth win come: at Miami or Kentucky?
The Hurricanes were one of the most overhyped teams in America last season. They started ranked No. 16 in the AP preseason poll. They finished 5-7, losing to Middle Tennessee and Duke. Their last four losses were by 24 or more. Bad. Bad enough that Mario Cristobal shook up his coaching staff.
Kentucky, in case you missed it, has won four straight against the Cardinals by an average score of 45-14.
So the smart play will be Louisville defeating Miami an losing to Kentucky.
What's the fun in playing it safe? I've got the Cards losing at Hard Rock Stadium to an improved Hurricanes team but finishing the season by ending the losing streak against Mark Stoops.
Beating Kentucky was a Scott Satterfield problem. I don't expect it to be a Jeff Brohm problem.
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