—LB Kalib Perry and CB Jabari Mack both appear to be “unofficially” back with the Louisville football team for their 5th seasons. Safety D’Angelo Hutchinson appears poised to join them soon.
—Fox Sports ranks all 138 FBS teams for the upcoming college football season and has Louisville at No. 27.
—The U of L women’s soccer team earned its first victory of the season (and the first victory for any Cardinal team in 2026-27), with a 5-1 thumping of IU Indy Sunday night.
—The week ahead in Cardinal sports:
Wednesday, August 19
- Field Hockey vs Bellarmine (Scrimmage) – 5 p.m. ET (Trager Stadium)
Thursday, August 20
- Men’s Soccer vs IU Indy – 6 p.m. ET (Dr. Mark & Cindy Lynn Stadium)
Friday, August 21
- Volleyball vs No. 8 Texas A&M – 6 p.m. ET (Milwaukee, Wis.)
Saturday, August 22
- Field Hockey vs Ball State (Scrimmage) – 12 p.m. ET (Muncie, Ind.)
- Volleyball vs No. 6 Wisconsin – 4 p.m. ET (Milwaukee, Wis.)
Sunday, August 23
- Women’s Soccer vs Belmont – 7 p.m. ET (Dr. Mark & Cindy Lynn Stadium)
—The Miami Dolphins have activated former Louisville WR Chris Bell off the injured last, paving the way for him to begin practicing with the team.
—The 7th-ranked Louisville volleyball team got its final preseason on tune-up with its annual Red-Black Scrimmage on Sunday. The Cards open the season on Friday night against reigning national champion Texas A&M, the same squad that knocked them out of the 2025 NCAA Tournament.
—Red hot Racing Louisville, which has suddenly won four of its last five matches, takes on Seattle Wednesday night at 6:30 p.m. Card Chronicle readers can get discounted tickets here.
—You hate to see it.
—The $180 million Kentucky Expo Center expansion is nearly done.
—Jabari Mack told Cardinal Authority’s Jacob Polacheck that returning to Louisville was always his “first option” when the Colorado “5 for 5” ruling first went into effect.
—With Louisville’s pitching staff struggling immensely over the last few years, Dan McDonnell is shifting to a more analytics-driven philosophy in 2026.
—The CBS Candid Coaches series is back for 2026 and starts with the hottest topic in college hoops: Should 2026 seniors be grandfathered into the 5-in-5 rule for 2026-27? A small majority of coaches sided with “yes.”
- “Making this rule and announcing it before the start of classes is maybe the dumbest move of all time. Maybe as dumb as Mark Emmert saying paying players will never happen.”
- “Yes. I will either be Warden Norton in his office or Red meeting up with Andy on the beach in a month’s time.”
- “I just wish it was done either last October when it was first being discussed OR in the spring. However, all of us always think our world is the most important and it’s not. If the rule officially changed any other time, football would be 100% more chaotic with lawsuits than what basketball is seeing currently.”
- “Yes — if they all get the year. I don’t think giving it to people because they sue is wise.”
- “Do I support it? Yes. Was it handled the right way? Not at all. No reason to cut off that group when they just finished. You were just asking for trouble.”
- “YES. We have made exceptions and appeals for most athletes the last 20 years, so why start now? Let them all play. Start anew.”
- “This should have been a no-brainer. The 2022 (high school) class dealt with so many obstacles that were completely outside of their control, so I think they should absolutely be grandfathered into the five-for-five rule. My biggest frustration is the timing. This decision should have been made back in January. If it had, every program could have planned for scholarships, roster management and finances. Instead, making this decision this late creates a huge advantage for some schools, a disadvantage for others and a lot of unnecessary chaos. But at the end of the day, if it’s about doing what’s right for the student-athletes, I’d give this group that extra year.”
—The ESPN College GameDay podcast previews the ACC here.
—SB Nation’s Mark Schofield lists the 27 best games of the 2026 college football season. Louisville’s home tilt against SMU in week three makes the cut.
—Ahead of Louisville’s season opener against No. 9 Ole Miss, the CJ looks at how Jeff Brohm has fared against SEC teams over his career.
—The North Oldham Little League team came up one win short of a trip to Williamsport.
—Black Kelsey just moves different.
—SMU QB Kevin Jennings has returned to practice ahead of schedule after suffering a finger injury.
—Brett McMurphy had Louisville at No. 21 in his preseason AP poll ballot.
—CAL’s Ja’Hyde Brown talks about his flip from Indiana to Louisville, his push to be Kentucky’s Mr. Football in 2026, his chances of winning a fourth state title in four years, and more.
—In college sports’ NIL era, ‘there’s no real rules’ for agents, and some people like it that way.
For those who have spent long careers representing athletes, the approach of the class of agents unleashed by NIL is maddening, if not a threat to their industry.
“You’re either an agent or you’re not,” said Buddy Baker, a longtime NFL agent. “You don’t get to just declare yourself an agent if you don’t have an expertise in this field. … Unfortunately, in this space right now, we don’t have any (oversight). People are just planting their flag and saying, ‘I am an agent.’”
“It’s bastardizing our profession, for sure,” said one longtime NFL agent, who like others interviewed for this story spoke on condition of anonymity in exchange for their candor.
“These guys, they’re not agents at all,” added another. “I’m trying to go through some handler who has no f—ing clue what my world is or what we’re doing. And he’s like, ‘How much money can you get them?’”
The 20-somethings at A&P have come to wear disparagement as a badge of honor, and there’s no denying their foothold: In the past college football transfer portal cycle, according to A&P, the agency negotiated more than $30 million in player contracts and many millions more in marketing deals.
“There’s certain things that I look for in people that even agents that have been doing whatever professional sport for 10, 15 years can’t match,” Tricomi said on the sideline of the practice field. “There’s no experience in this. That’s why we’re outperforming NFL agents in NIL right now.”
“You’re getting your ass handed to you by somebody who wasn’t even in this f—ing world five years ago,” Piasecki replied.
“If they didn’t hate us,” Tricomi added, “we were doing something wrong.”
—The latest episode of the From the Pinks podcast is out.
—ESPN personality Pat McAfee made a music album that was “a train of diarrhea and disappointment.”
—There will be a celebration for the UFL champion Louisville Kings on Sept. 16 from 6-8 p.m. at Lynn Family Stadium. More details here.
—Former Kings standout Corey Mayfield Jr. has signed a deal with the Tennessee Titans.
—Louisville loves Lamar.
—With the addition of Seth Trimble, Gary Parrish has Louisville up six spots to No. 8 in his latest preseason rankings.
—Jason Frakes of the CJ lists the 40 best juniors in the state heading into the 2026 high school football season.
—Episodes 6 and 7 of the Louisville football all access series are available now.
—During Monday’s Kickoff Luncheon, Josh Heird addressed his offseason “butting of heads” with Jeff Brohm, but said the hatchet has now been buried.
—The Trinity Shamrocks will seek yet another 6-A state title despite playing a “murderous” schedule in 2026.
—The Grueling Truth breaks down the Louisville football offense.
—Louisville has offered class of 2027 combo guard Brady Pettigrew.
—Jeff Brohm wasn’t thrilled with his defense after Saturday’s first scrimmage of fall camp.
—And finally, U of L’s appearance in today’s preseason AP top 25 poll means that No. 24 Louisville vs. No. 9 Ole Miss will be the first ranked versus ranked matchup of the 2026 college football season, and the only such matchup of week one. Let’s go.
