Can’t say it often enough: Saturdays are fun again for Cardinal fans.

Pretty clear after the University of Louisville football team’s 62-59 win over Wake Forest on Saturday that UofL is much further along than anyone expected at this point in Coach Scott Satterfield’s first season.

Satterfield and his staff have done an unbelievable job of refocusing this team from top to bottom, teaching and motivating the players, instilling in them a collective desire to win. Then they go out there and compete, winning four of their first six games, outscoring the top two offenses in the Atlantic Coast Conference two weeks in a row.

Coach Scott Satterfield

“Coming in, we thought we had some good receivers and running backs, which I thought was going to be a plus for us,” said Satterfield at his Monday press conference. “I’m pleased with the way our offensive line has come around, which has been a plus. We have to get better defensively.”

The staff and players obviously have much more work to do on defense but nobody doubts that they are committed. Based on improvements in other area’s of the team’s development, don’t  be surprised to see similar improvement on that side of the ball.

Now comes the supreme test for this team, lining up against nationally second-ranked Clemson next Saturday at Cardinal Stadium for a noon kickoff. Clemson has won 21 games in a row, and the Las Vegas oddsmakers have the visiting Tigers a 21-point favorite.

The oddsmakers unable to get past Clemson’s 77-16 demolishing of Louisville last season under totally different circumstances. UofL was unable to stop anybody last season. Not expecting UofL to put up much of a fight for some reason.

If Louisville has accomplished anything during the first six games, it is that this team is not going to roll over for anybody.  The times, they are a-changing.

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By Charlie Springer

Charlie Springer is a former Louisville editor and sportswriter, a public affairs consultant, a UofL grad and longtime fan.