Louisville looks set to have its biggest offensive weapon on the field when the Cardinals open against Ole Miss on Sunday.
Running back Isaac Brown is expected to be “ready to go” for the season-opener, according to head coach Jeff Brohm, who said Monday that Brown has “had a good camp” and is “fresh and ready” for the Rebels. Brown had been considered questionable entering the season because of injury after being limited during offseason workouts by unspecified lower-body issues.
Brohm on Isaac Brown: "I think Isaac's ready to go. He's had a good camp. He's fresh and ready."
- Alexis Cubit (@Alexis_Cubit) August 31, 2026
Brown has built a reputation as one of the nation’s top backs in a hurry. He led the ACC in yards per carry in each of his first two seasons with Louisville, then put together another big year in 2025, when he ran for 884 yards in nine games while averaging 8.8 yards per carry. He also has 18 rushing touchdowns in his career.
Big games have been part of the package, too. Brown has topped 100 rushing yards in 11 of his 22 career college games, with those performances coming against teams including Kentucky, Clemson, SMU and Miami. His career high is 205 yards, which he posted against Boston College in 2025.
Louisville will test him against an Ole Miss defense that finished 13th in the SEC in yards per carry allowed last season. According to Underdog, Brown’s rushing projection for Sunday is 67.5 yards.
In Other News...
Texas A&M Just Got Pulled Into LSUs Messiest SEC Fight
The SECs latest eligibility fight has quickly turned into a leaguewide headache, and Ole Miss is sitting right in the middle of it. The conference office has said it will follow court orders on eligibility cases, even as 15 member schools are reportedly weighing punitive action against LSU over the Tigers plan to roster football players with NFL experience in 2026. For Rebels fans, the story has an obvious edge because two former Ole Miss players, DaeQuan Wright and Zxavian Harris, are among the names LSU is said to have secured commitments from under the NCAAs new 5-in-5 policy.
The tension comes from the SECs own stance, since the league previously voted to bar ex-professionals from returning to college sports, a measure LSU reportedly abstained from. That leaves the conference in a strange spot: the league says it will comply with the courts, rival schools are talking about punishment, and LSU is pushing ahead with a plan that could redraw the line between college and pro football. For Ole Miss, it is another reminder that roster news in the SEC can become much bigger than one teams depth chart. [Read more 🡒]
Lane Kiffin's LSU Start Already Comes With A Major Roster Problem
Lane Kiffins move to LSU has already put him in the middle of roster building, and not just the usual kind that comes with taking over a new program. After leaving Ole Miss before the College Football Playoff began, Kiffin is now helping shape the Tigers next steps while also trying to get ready for the games ahead, with Clemson and his former team still looming on the schedule.
The immediate complication is centered on two professional players whose commitments are tied up in a court hearing and SEC guidance, leaving LSU with a decision-making process that is anything but routine. For Kiffin, it is a familiar kind of chaos in a new setting: he is supposed to be preparing to coach, but the roster questions are already demanding attention. [Read more 🡒]
Louisville Has A Chance To Make A Massive Week 1 Statement
Ole Miss opens its season Sunday night at Nissan Stadium in Nashville with a neutral-site matchup against Louisville that feels like a little more than your standard Week 1 tune-up. The setting alone gives it a big-game feel, and the way the matchup shapes up suggests plenty of offense and very little breathing room, which is exactly the sort of test the Rebels want as they try to back up a top-10 ranking.
For Ole Miss, this is about proving the preseason respect was earned and not just handed out on projection. Louisville brings enough credibility to make the result matter well beyond the opener, and a strong showing would go a long way toward settling early questions about where the Rebels really belong in the national picture. [Read more 🡒]