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2018 Louisville

2–⁠10 (0–⁠8 Atlantic Coast Conference), coached by Bobby Petrino, then Lorenzo Ward (interim, remainder of season).

Schedule and results

Louisville in 2018, game by game: lost vs. No. 1 Alabama 14–51; won vs. Indiana State 31–7; won vs. Western Kentucky 20–17; lost at Virginia 3–27; lost vs. Florida State 24–28; lost vs. Georgia Tech 31–66; lost at Boston College 20–38; lost vs. Wake Forest 35–56; lost at No. 2 Clemson 16–77; lost at No. 13 Syracuse 23–54; lost vs. NC State 10–52; lost vs. No. 17 Kentucky 10–56+24−61Lost 14–51 vs. No. 1 Alabama-37No. 1 AlabamaWon 31–7 vs. Indiana State+24Indiana StateWon 20–17 vs. Western Kentucky+3Western KentuckyLost 3–27 at Virginia-24VirginiaLost 24–28 vs. Florida State-4Florida StateLost 31–66 vs. Georgia Tech-35Georgia TechLost 20–38 at Boston College-18Boston CollegeLost 35–56 vs. Wake Forest-21Wake ForestLost 16–77 at No. 2 Clemson-61No. 2 ClemsonLost 23–54 at No. 13 Syracuse-31No. 13 SyracuseLost 10–52 vs. NC State-42NC StateLost 10–56 vs. No. 17 Kentucky-46No. 17 Kentucky
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 1vs1AlabamaL 14–⁠5126%
Sep 8vsIndiana StateW 31–⁠791%
Sep 15vsWestern KentuckyW 20–⁠1774%
Sep 22atVirginiaL 3–⁠2754%
Sep 29vsFlorida StateL 24–⁠2856%
Oct 5vsGeorgia TechL 31–⁠6659%
Oct 13atBoston CollegeL 20–⁠3830%
Oct 27vsWake ForestL 35–⁠5654%
Nov 3at2ClemsonL 16–⁠777%
Nov 9at13SyracuseL 23–⁠5423%
Nov 17vsNC StateL 10–⁠5229%
Nov 24vs17KentuckyL 10–⁠5631%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Kentucky 56–⁠10; unranked in the final AP poll; 14th in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In program history: The 63rd-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 82 on file).

Record
2–⁠10
Conference
0–⁠8 14th in Atlantic Coast Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
237–⁠529
Coach
Bobby Petrino, then Lorenzo Ward (interim, remainder of season)
Elo
1364 −215 this season
SP+ rating
-9.1 No. 98 of 130; offense No. 101, defense No. 99, special teams No. 67
SRS
−11.8 No. 107 of 130 in FBS
Returning
37% of last season’s EPA, No. 105 of 130
Recruiting class
No. 30 roster talent No. 40 in FBS
Offensive coordinators
Lonnie Galloway and Mike Summers
Defensive coordinator
Brian VanGorder
Offense
Multiple
Defense
4–⁠3

How good, play by play

  • Offense119th of 130
  • Defense127th of 130
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted111th of 130
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted131st of 130
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense-0.0439%1.25119th of 130
Defense0.3355%1.17127th of 130
Opponent-adjusted0.02 off
0.26 def		41% off
52% def		—111th off
131st 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
Offense2.8own 2819% allowed
Defense4.5own 329% caused

CORE rating -14.5, 114th of 130 (offense -4.4, defense 10.1).

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 yardsJawon Pass QB1,960 yds
Passing touchdownsJawon Pass QB8 TD
Rushing yardsMalik Cunningham QB497 yds
Rushing touchdownsMalik Cunningham QB5 TD
Receiving yardsJaylen Smith WR550 yds
Receiving touchdownsDez Fitzpatrick WR3 TD
TacklesDee Smith S65 tkl
SacksAmonte Caban DL2 sacks
InterceptionsC.J. Avery LB2 INT

Top recruits in the 2018 class

Jairus Brents CB★★★★No. 230
Robert Hicks ILB★★★★No. 240
Trenell Troutman S★★★★No. 278
Chandler Jones CB★★★No. 385
Marcus Riley ATH★★★No. 383

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

The 2018 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks32.30.788
Running backs23.00.845
Receivers32.70.812
Offensive line13.00.845
Defensive line43.00.862
Linebackers23.50.885
Defensive backs33.70.902
Athletes and specialists33.00.870
Whole class213.00.851

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.

Roster 122

The 2018 roster

122 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2018 line; 67 have a stat line. See the roster

2018 Atlantic Coast Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Clemson8–⁠015–⁠01
Syracuse6–⁠210–⁠315
Pittsburgh6–⁠27–⁠7
NC State5–⁠39–⁠4
Georgia Tech5–⁠37–⁠6
Virginia4–⁠48–⁠5
Boston College4–⁠47–⁠5
Miami4–⁠47–⁠6
Virginia Tech4–⁠46–⁠7
Duke3–⁠58–⁠5
Wake Forest3–⁠57–⁠6
Florida State3–⁠55–⁠7
North Carolina1–⁠72–⁠9
Louisville0–⁠82–⁠10

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