LOUISVILLE, Ky. – July 28, 2020
The University of Louisville football season is expected to start next Tuesday, and UofL offensive coordinator Dwayne Ledford is more than ready to unleash his offense.
The Cardinals will take the field on Tuesday morning for the official start of the 2020 season. There are some unanswered questions still remaining about what that may look like, but whatever composition it does take, the Cardinals chomping at the bit to get out on the field.
“Yes, absolutely. We’re full speed ahead,” Ledford said on Tuesday afternoon. “We will be out on the field Tuesday for our first full practice, and we’re excited to just get back on the field together.”
The Cardinals have been conducting full-team workouts for over a week now, and the practices have been competitive and intense. There is still a lot of doubt throughout the college football world, but the Cardinals are controlling what they can control.
“We’re just consuming ourselves with what we gotta do today,” Ledford said. “That’s what we can control. We’re just making sure that we’re focused on what we can be doing, and getting prepared and getting ready for when we kick off fall camp.”
Entering his second season leading the offense, Ledord, who oversaw one of the most explosive offenses in the nation, can see a new attitude in his unit after last season’s 8-5 record and improvement on the offensive side of the ball.
“You can see the excitement and the energy from the guys,” Ledford said. “It’s fun just to see that and sense that from the guys. They’re ready for it.”
Losing only three starters on offense, Ledford is excited about what is returning and where this offense could head in 2020.
“We’re very excited with the spring practices we got in,” Ledford said. “We were excited to see the progression of the offense last season and how they worked in bowl preparations. We have some very talented individuals. We have a bunch of unselfish players who love football. We are eager to see us take the field and see what this product looks like this year.”
The Cardinals have a good mix of veterans and newcomers on the offensive line, and the aspect that makes Ledford such an outstanding coach is the unity his build among his offensive line. Robbie Bell, Caleb Chandler, and Cole Bentley are three veterans, who will lead, and the offensive coordonator likes how that trio is bringing along the younger players.
“The thing that we do well as a coaching staff is that we do a lot of stuff with our players outside of the complex,” Ledford said. “We try to build those bonds with the young guys who just get here. We have a good group of upperclassmen, and they’ve taken the younger players under their wings.”
Winning eight games last season was unexpected, but last year is a distant memory. The expectations heading into the season are at a different level, but the Cardinals expect to take another step forward.
“We want to play with great effort,” Ledford said. “Last year was putting in the attitude and effort part of football into the team. Now, we are at an elite level. All 11 guys are out there and know what they are doing. We’re taking ownership in know what it takes to execute at a high level. If we have all 11 guys doing their jobs, we can be a great offense. We need to finish everything… playing through the whistle.”