CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2016 Louisville

9–⁠4 (7–⁠1 Atlantic Coast Conference), coached by Bobby Petrino, finished No. 21 in the AP poll.

Schedule and results

Louisville in 2016, game by game: won vs. Charlotte 70–14; won at Syracuse 62–28; won vs. No. 2 Florida State 63–20; won at Marshall 59–28; lost at No. 5 Clemson 36–42; won vs. Duke 24–14; won vs. NC State 54–13; won at Virginia 32–25; won at Boston College 52–7; won vs. Wake Forest 44–12; lost at Houston 10–36; lost vs. Kentucky 38–41; lost vs. No. 19 LSU 9–29+56−26Won 70–14 vs. Charlotte+56CharlotteWon 62–28 at Syracuse+34SyracuseWon 63–20 vs. No. 2 Florida State+43No. 2 Florida StateWon 59–28 at Marshall+31MarshallLost 36–42 at No. 5 Clemson-6No. 5 ClemsonWon 24–14 vs. Duke+10DukeWon 54–13 vs. NC State+41NC StateWon 32–25 at Virginia+7VirginiaWon 52–7 at Boston College+45Boston CollegeWon 44–12 vs. Wake Forest+32Wake ForestLost 10–36 at Houston-26HoustonLost 38–41 vs. Kentucky-3KentuckyLost 9–29 vs. No. 19 LSU-20No. 19 LSU
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 1vsCharlotteW 70–⁠1489%
Sep 9atSyracuseW 62–⁠2864%
Sep 17vs2Florida StateW 63–⁠2047%
Sep 24atMarshallW 59–⁠2859%
Oct 1at5ClemsonL 36–⁠4233%
Oct 14vsDukeW 24–⁠1481%
Oct 22vsNC StateW 54–⁠1372%
Oct 29atVirginiaW 32–⁠2577%
Nov 5atBoston CollegeW 52–⁠775%
Nov 12vsWake ForestW 44–⁠1286%
Nov 17atHoustonL 10–⁠3653%
Nov 26vsKentuckyL 38–⁠4183%
Dec 31Bowls & playoffvs19LSUCitrus BowlL 9–⁠2947%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to LSU 29–⁠9 in the Citrus Bowl; No. 21 in the final AP poll; tied for first in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In program history: The 9th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 82 on file).

AP poll, week by week

  1. Wk 1: 19
  2. Wk 2: 13
  3. Wk 3: 10
  4. Wk 4: 3
  5. Wk 5: 3
  6. Wk 6: 7
  7. Wk 7: 7
  8. Wk 8: 7
  9. Wk 9: 5
  10. Wk 10: 5
  11. Wk 11: 5
  12. Wk 12: 3
  13. Wk 13: 11
  14. Wk 14: 16
  15. Wk 15: 15
  16. Final: 21

ACC Atlantic champions7–⁠1 in the conference, shared with Clemson

Heisman TrophyLamar Jackson, QB; also the Maxwell and Walter Camp

Consensus All-AmericanLamar Jackson, QB

Record
9–⁠4
Conference
7–⁠1 shared first in Atlantic Coast Conference
AP final
No. 21 peak No. 3
Points
553–⁠309
Coach
Bobby Petrino
Elo
1652 +60 this season
SP+ rating
22.9 No. 9 of 128; offense No. 8, defense No. 15, special teams No. 73
SRS
14.2 No. 13 of 128 in FBS
Returning
100% of last season’s EPA, No. 5 of 128
Recruiting class
No. 38 roster talent No. 32 in FBS
Offensive coordinators
Lonnie Galloway and Chris Klenakis
Defensive coordinator
Todd Grantham
Offense
Multiple
Defense
3–⁠4

How good, play by play

  • Offense8th of 128
  • Defense9th of 128
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted3rd of 128
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted12th of 128
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.2749%1.258th of 128
Defense-0.0634%1.289th of 128
Opponent-adjusted0.27 off
-0.02 def		51% off
35% def		—3rd off
12th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense4.4own 3217% allowed
Defense3.3own 3219% caused

CORE rating 24.6, 3rd of 128 (offense 15.7, defense -8.9).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsLamar Jackson QB3,543 yds
Passing touchdownsLamar Jackson QB30 TD
Rushing yardsLamar Jackson QB1,571 yds
Rushing touchdownsLamar Jackson QB21 TD
Receiving yardsJames Quick WR769 yds
Receiving touchdownsCole Hikutini TE8 TD
TacklesKeith Kelsey LB91 tkl
SacksJames Hearns LB8 sacks
InterceptionsJaire Alexander CB5 INT

Top recruits in the 2016 class

Jawon Pass DUAL★★★★No. 203
Dez Fitzpatrick WR★★★★No. 260
Chris Taylor-Yamanoha WR★★★No. 455
P.J. Blue OLB★★★No. 489
Seth Dawkins S★★★No. 520

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2016 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks14.00.921
Running backs12.00.787
Receivers43.30.867
Offensive line22.50.808
Defensive line63.00.837
Linebackers23.00.865
Defensive backs23.00.869
Athletes and specialists23.00.827
Whole class203.00.847

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2017

The 2017 draft
Rd 6Colin Holba LSPittsburgh Steelers
Rd 7Josh Harvey-Clemons SWashington Redskins

Roster 110

The 2016 roster

110 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2016 line; 59 have a stat line. See the roster

2016 Atlantic Coast Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Clemson7–⁠114–⁠11
Louisville7–⁠19–⁠421
Virginia Tech6–⁠210–⁠416
Florida State5–⁠310–⁠38
Miami5–⁠39–⁠420
North Carolina5–⁠38–⁠5
Pittsburgh5–⁠38–⁠5
Georgia Tech4–⁠49–⁠4
Wake Forest3–⁠57–⁠6
NC State3–⁠57–⁠6
Boston College2–⁠67–⁠6
Syracuse2–⁠64–⁠8
Duke1–⁠74–⁠8
Virginia1–⁠72–⁠10

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.