August is almost here, and Louisville football is about to kick off fall camp on August 6. Before the Cardinals get rolling, CardinalAuthority’s Jacob Polacheck and Michael McCammon laid out a set of 2026 hot takes that cover everything from the opener to the ACC title game.
One of the boldest calls has Louisville starting fast and then stumbling once league play begins. Jacob Polacheck sees the Cardinals opening 2-0 with wins over Ole Miss and Villanova, but then taking a loss to SMU in their ACC opener.
He pointed to Louisville’s fourth season under Jeff Brohm, the presence of returners Isaac Brown and Clev Lubin, and Ole Miss’ offseason shakeup, with Lane Kiffin heading to LSU and Pete Golding taking over, as reasons the Cardinals could spring the upset in Nashville. Still, he expects the SMU game to go the other way, noting Louisville’s No. 3 spot in the ACC preseason polls behind SMU and Miami and referencing SMU’s dominant win last year.
At quarterback, Michael McCammon is betting on Lincoln Kienholz to make the job look a lot less uncertain. The Ohio State transfer is the big question at the position, but McCammon believes the South Dakota native will thrive with the opportunity and steer a balanced Louisville offense that ranks among the nation’s best. In his view, Kienholz handles the spotlight well and throws for more than 3,000 yards this season.
Polacheck also went in a different direction when it came to Louisville’s touchdown leader. Instead of Isaac Brown, Keyjuan Brown, Tre Richardson, or another obvious name, he picked tight end Brody Foley.
Foley arrives from Tulsa after catching seven touchdowns and adding two more scores on the ground last season, and Polacheck sees that red-zone production carrying over. With the Cardinals’ running backs and receivers drawing most of the attention, he thinks Foley becomes the surprise option defenses have to account for near the goal line.
McCammon’s outlook for Louisville at home is spotless. He expects the Cardinals to clean up the close losses that hurt them at L&N Stadium last season, when they dropped three games there by a combined seven points, including two overtime defeats.
This time, he has Louisville finishing 6-0 at home. Louisville has not gone through a home schedule without a loss since 2006.
On defense, Polacheck reserved his biggest praise for Clev Lubin. After posting 8.5 sacks and 13.5 tackles for loss in 2025, Lubin is projected to take another step and emerge as the ACC’s Defensive Player of the Year.
Polacheck said he briefly considered going all the way to Louisville’s single-season sack record, but backed off once he remembered Elvis Dumervil’s 20.5-sack season. Even so, he believes Lubin can elevate himself into program-great territory.
McCammon’s final prediction is the most ambitious of the bunch. He has Louisville finishing the regular season just behind Miami in the ACC standings, setting up a rematch with the Hurricanes in the ACC Championship Game. From there, he sees the Cardinals pulling the upset behind a balanced offense and an aggressive defense, earning the program’s first trip to the College Football Playoff.
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Louisvilles ACC Hopes Ride On Jeff Brohms New Offensive Core
With the season opener against Ole Miss looming, Louisville is trying to sort out a revamped offense that will lean heavily on new faces and a few established pieces. The Cardinals brought in transfer quarterback Lincoln Kienholz to help steer the unit, while Isaac Brown and Keyjuan Brown give Jeff Brohm a backfield that should provide some balance as the staff works through its early-season answers.
The receiving group is where the intrigue really starts to build, with transfers Lawayne McCoy and Tre Richardson stepping into spots created by major departures. Richardson, in particular, arrives with the chance to become a central part of the passing game, and Louisville will need that kind of immediate production if it wants to keep pace in ACC play after the opener sets the tone. [Read more 🡒]
Louisville Fall Camp Puts Kienholz And New Targets Under Pressure
Early August brings the kind of urgency that makes fall camp matter, and Louisville is leaning into it as it starts building toward the 2026 opener against Ole Miss. The Cardinals are using these practices to sort out position battles, deepen a defense that needs reliable answers, and get a clearer picture of who can create offense when the lights come on.
Lincoln Kienholz sits at the center of that conversation, with the quarterback room offering one of camps biggest evaluation points. Louisville also needs new receiving options to come forward, and Tre Richardson, Lawayne McCoy and TreyShun Hurry are among the names being watched closely as the staff tries to determine who can become the go-to targets before the season arrives. [Read more 🡒]
Louisville Could Be Counting On A Quiet Local Linebacker Soon
Jacob Smith has been the kind of local prospect programs like to point to when they talk about development and patience. A redshirt sophomore linebacker from Somerset, Kentucky, who starred at Corbin High School and earned all-state honors, Smith arrived in the state with a strong reputation and the appeal of staying close to home. His path to this point has been quieter than his high school rsum suggested, but there is still a sense that his best football is ahead of him.
Smith is aiming for a bigger role in 2026, with the hope that he can work his way into the linebacker rotation and give Louisville another homegrown option on defense. For now, the intrigue is less about what he has already done and more about what kind of opportunity opens up next, especially for a player whose first two seasons have not yet produced the kind of extended run that would answer all the questions. [Read more 🡒]