2006 Louisville Cardinals football team The 2006 Louisville Cardinals football team represented the University of Louisville in the 2006 college football season . The team , led by Bobby Petrino in his fourth year at the school , played their home games in Papa John ' s Cardinal Stadium . Playing in their second year in the Big East Conference , the team finished the regular season with eleven wins and one loss and were conference champions . They represented the Big East in the 2007 Orange Bowl and with the win ended the season with a 12 - 1 record . The team ended the season ranked fifth in the nation . Pre - season . The Cardinals finished the 2005 season with a 9 - 3 record , including a loss in the Gator Bowl . After the loss they were ranked 19th in the nation . Returning eight starters from their 2005 offense , including Brian Brohm and Michael Bush and nine starters on a defense that allowed 320 yards a game the team was picked , by the Big East media , to finish second in the conference . Coaching changes . After assistant coach Tony Levine left the Cardinals for a job in the NFL , he was replaced as special teams coordinator and outside linebackers coach by Tom McMahon . McMahon had eight years of assistant coaching experience at Utah State . Also added to the staff as a new assistant strength coach was Bryan Dermody . Roster changes . Although returning 17 starters from 2005 , the team lost other key players to the 2006 NFL Draft . Four players were taken in the draft , three of which were defensive starters . From the offense , offensive guard Jason Spitz was taken in the third round by Green Bay . From the defense , end Elvis Dumervil was taken by Denver , linebacker Brandon Johnson by Arizona and tackle Montavious Stanley by Dallas . Recruiting . The Cardinals signed 25 recruits for the new class . Included in the top - 40 class were three four - star recruits on offense , a five - star recruit on defense , and another four four - star recruits on defense . Pre - season honors . Five Cardinals ' players were honored as part of pre - season watchlists for national awards . Season . Coaching staff . The Cardinal team was coached by Bobby Petrino and his staff , most of whom were in their fourth year together . Tom McMahon was brought in this year to coach special teams and the outside linebackers . Schedule . Game Capsules . Kentucky . The Cardinals opened their season against in - state rivals the Kentucky Wildcats , playing for the Governor ' s Cup . Kentucky , led by fourth year coach Rich Brooks and quarterback Andre ' Woodson , came into the game not having beaten the Cardinals in four years . Louisville took an early lead with three Michael Bush touchdown runs in the first half , added to a touchdown pass by Brian Brohm and a field goal by Art Carmody . Woodson threw a pair of touchdown passes at the end of the half to bring the teams into halftime with the Cardinals leading 31 - 14 . On their first possession of the second half , Michael Bush , already having 124 yards rushing , was injured . It was eventually revealed that he had broken his leg and would be out for the rest of the season . Despite the loss of Bush , the Cardinals still managed to score four more touchdowns in the game , including two by his replacement , George Stripling . With another long touchdown pass by Woodson and a kickoff return for a touchdown by Keenan Burton , the game ended with the Cardinals winning 59 - 28 . With the win , the Cardinals moved up a spot to 12th in the nation . Temple . The Cardinals next went on the road to face the Temple Owls led by second - year head coach Al Golden and quarterback Adam Dimichele . The Cardinals scored early and often with 5 rushing touchdowns in the first half added to a 57 - yard passing touchdown by Brohm to give them a 42 - 0 lead at halftime . The second half wasn ' t better for the Owls , still failing to score and giving up two more rushing touchdowns and a pair of field goals by Art Carmody . When the game was over the Cardinals won 62 - 0 and had amassed 671 total yards of offense . After the game , Louisville kept their number 12 ranking . Miami . The Cardinals first big test of the year came against the 15th ranked Miami Hurricanes , led by sixth year head coach Larry Coker and quarterback Kyle Wright . Louisville had never beaten the Hurricanes before in 10 previous meetings . Prior to the game , Hurricane players came to midfield to stomp on the Cardinals logo , causing a small altercation . Early , Louisville ' s strong offense struggled against the powerful Miami defense , a defense that had only given up 200 yards a game . Miami scored first on a rushing touchdown , but would be unable to score again . The Cardinals , led by Brohm , scored on a field goal and a long touchdown pass to take a 10 - 7 lead at halftime . In the third quarter , Brohm injured his thumb and would be taken out of the game . It was later reported that he would be out for four to six weeks . His loss didn ' t stop the Cardinals offense though , with running back Kolby Smith scoring two rushing touchdowns in the third quarter , and Brohm ' s replacement , Hunter Cantwell , throwing another touchdown in the fourth to bring the final score to 31 - 7 in favor of the Cardinals . Although they had been averaging over 600 yards per game , the Cardinals were held to 382 , but it was enough to defeat the Hurricanes . After the game the Cardinals moved to 9th in the nation , while the Hurricanes dropped out of the polls for the first time since 1999 . Kansas State . The Cardinals next faced the Kansas State Wildcats on the road . The Wildcats , led by first - year head coach Ron Prince and quarterback duo Josh Freeman and Dylan Meier , were 3 - 0 . They had the number 14th ranked defense in total yards in the nation and had not given up an offensive touchdown since their first game . However , the Cardinals first possession , a 97 - yard drive that ended with Cantwell throwing a 19 - yard touchdown pass , ended the streak . Though the Cardinals struggled moving the ball for the rest of the half , even turning the ball over a few times , they were able to score on a field goal by Art Carmody to take a 10 - 0 lead to the half . In the second half , Louisville was able to score on a pair of runs to take a 24 - 0 lead , but Kansas State finally got on the board with a 69 - yard run by Thomas Clayton . After a failed two - point conversion attempt , neither team could score again and Louisville won 24 - 6 . Their offense , ranked first in the nation in total yards with 563 per game , was once again held for under 400 yards . With the win , the Cardinals moved to eighth in the rankings . Middle Tennessee State . The Cardinals next went on the road to face the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders , led by first - year head coach Rick Stockstill and quarterback Clint Marks . The Cardinals scored on an early field goal , but the Blue Raiders took the lead when Damon Nickson returned the ensuing kickoff 88 - yards for a touchdown . After a field goal by the Blue Raiders gave them a 10 - 3 lead , the Cardinals opened up the scoring with two more field goals and a pair of touchdown passes by Hunter Cantwell to Mario Urrutia . At halftime the Cardinals led 23 - 10 . In the second half , Cantwell threw another touchdown and Kolby Smith and Anthony Allen both ran for touchdowns for the Cardinals . Clint Marks threw a touchdown in the fourth quarter , but it was too late for the comeback , giving the Cardinals a 44 - 17 win . With the win , the Cardinals moved up to seventh in the rankings . Cincinnati . The Cardinals next started their Big East schedule playing the Cincinnati Bearcats in a homecoming game . The Bearcats , led by third - year head coach Mark Dantonio and quarterback Dustin Grutza , though struggling with a 3 - 3 record on the season , had played number 1 ranked Ohio State and highly ranked Virginia Tech , and had held early leads on both . Cardinal quarterback , Brian Brohm returned from his thumb injury , but struggled in the first half . The Bearcats took an early lead on a field goal and after the Cardinals tied the game , took another lead with a touchdown pass by Grutza . The Cardinals were able to score twice at the end of the half , including on a 1 - yard pass by Brohm , to take a 13 - 10 lead to halftime . After the half , the Cardinals scored on an Anthony Allen rush and another field goal by Art Carmody to have a 23 - 10 lead in the fourth quarter . Grutza threw another touchdown pass with four minutes left in the game and had a chance win with another pass in the endzone , however it was knocked down by Cardinal cornerback Gavin Smart to preserve the win . The Cardinals won 23 - 17 and continued their 15 - game home winning streak . With the win , the Cardinals moved to sixth in the nation . Syracuse . The Cardinals next went to Syracuse to face the Orange . The Orange , led by second - year head coach Greg Robinson and quarterback Perry Patterson , were looking for their first conference win in two years . Though both teams struggled to move the ball in the first quarter , the Orange took the first lead with two field goals in the second quarter . However , just before the half , the Cardinals took the ball on an 80 - yard drive that culminated in a 2 - yard touchdown by Anthony Allen . With the score , the Cardinals took a 7 - 6 lead to the half . In the third quarter the only score allowed was on a 5 - yard run by Kolby Smith for the Cardinals . Later in the fourth quarter , Allen scored his second touchdown to give the Cardinals a 21 - 6 lead . Patterson was finally able to connect with Mike Williams for a 37 - yard touchdown to bring the Orange to within 8 . The Orange looked ready to attempt to tie the game when the Cardinals bobbled the ensuing kickoff and were pinned at their own 7 , however , the Cardinals went on a 93 - yard drive which was capped with another Smith touchdown run . With no time remaining , the Cardinals won 28 - 13 . With the win the Cardinals moved to fifth in the nation . West Virginia . The Cardinals next had their biggest game of the season playing the third ranked West Virginia Mountaineers , led by sixth - year head coach Rich Rodriguez and quarterback Pat White . The game was hyped to be the Big East game of the year , after the epic 2005 game , and seemed that the winner would have national title hopes with both ranked in the top - 5 in the country and both tied with Rutgers for the lead in the Big East . The Cardinals took an early lead with an Art Carmody field goal , but gave up a 42 - yard touchdown run to Steve Slaton later in the quarter to give the Mountaineers a 7 - 3 lead at the end of the quarter . On their next drive , Carmody kicked another field goal for the Cardinals , and when their defense stopped the Mountaineers , the Cardinals took a lead on the next drive on an Anthony Allen touchdown . After a long kickoff return , Pat White ran for his own touchdown to give the Mountaineers the lead once again , however , Carmody kicked a third field goal before the half to give the Cardinals a 16 - 14 lead at halftime . After both teams fumbled on their first drives to start the half , a second Slaton fumble was returned by Malik Jackson for a Cardinal touchdown . When their defense held the Mountaineers , a punt was returned 40 - yards by Trent Guy for another Cardinal touchdown . White led the Mountaineers on a 92 - yard drive capped by his second rushing touchdown to bring them with nine at the end of the third quarter . On the first play of the fourth quarter , though , Brohm connected with Mario Urrutia to give the Cardinals a 37 - 21 lead . White led the Mountaineers on another drive and scored his third rushing touchdown of the day , but Allen answered for the Cardinals with his second touchdown to give them a 17 point lead with 12 minutes left in the game . After both teams had turnovers , White scored his fourth rushing touchdown with two minutes left in the game . After a failed onside kick , the Mountaineers were able to stop the Cardinals , but it was too late , as time ran out on the Mountaineer drive . The Cardinals won the game 44 - 34 , and remained tied for the Big East Conference lead . After the game , the Mountaineers dropped to tenth in the rankings , and the Cardinals moved up to fourth . Rutgers . The Cardinals next went to Rutgers to face the undefeated , 14th ranked Scarlet Knights , led by sixth year head coach Greg Schiano and quarterback Mike Teel . The winner of the game , which was billed as the biggest game ever at Rutgers , would take the lead in the Big East . The Cardinals took the first lead halfway through the first quarter with an Anthony Allen rushing touchdown , but Teel tied the game for the Knights on a 26 - yard touchdown pass . On the ensuing kickoff , however , Jajuan Spillman returned the ball 100 - yards for a touchdown to give the Cardinals a 15 - 7 lead at then end of the first quarter . Brohm then led the Cardinals on a pair of drives that ended in a touchdown and a field goal , before Ray Rice ran for his own touchdown to close out the half , with the Cardinals ahead 25 - 14 . In the third quarter , Rice got his second touchdown , and after the two - point conversion , the Knights were within 3 . After the Cardinals were unable to score on their first drive in the fourth quarter , the Knights tied the game on a Jeremy Ito field goal . Stopping the Cardinals once again , the Knights drove to the Louisville 16 - yard line with 21 seconds remaining in the game . Ito attempted the winning field goal , but missed . However , the Cardinals were penalized for being offsides , and Ito ' s second attempt was good , giving the Knights a 28 - 25 win . Following the game , Rutgers was the only undefeated team in the Big East and led the conference . The Cardinals dropped to 12th in the nation and second place in the conference . South Florida . The Cardinals next faced the South Florida Bulls , a team the Cardinals lost to in 2005 . The Bulls were led by eleventh - year head coach Jim Leavitt and quarterback Matt Grothe . Though neither team could get their offenses moving early in the game , the Cardinals took the lead after a pair of drives ended with a Brohm touchdown pass and a Carmody field goal , taking a 10 - 0 lead into the half . In the third quarter , the Cardinals were able to score two more touchdowns on an Anthony Allen run and another Brohm pass . Although Grothe threw a 44 - yard touchdown in the fourth and completed a two point conversion , the Cardinals answered with another Allen rushing touchdown . The Cardinals got a 31 - 8 win , and , after Rutgers lost to Cincinnati , were once again in a three - way tie atop the Big East . After the win , the Cardinals moved up to eleventh in the nation . Pittsburgh . The Cardinals next faced the Pittsburgh Panthers , led by second - year head coach Dave Wannstedt and quarterback Tyler Palko . The Cardinals opened the game with a 19 - yard touchdown by Anthony Allen , but the Panthers answered with a pair of touchdowns to take the lead . Carmody ' s field goal , late in the first quarter , brought the Cardinals to within 4 , and early in the second quarter they took the lead with a Brohm touchdown pass . The Panthers tied the game midway through the quarter , but Brohm ' s second touchdown pass gave the Cardinals a 24 - 17 lead at halftime . The third quarter consisted of two more Cardinal touchdowns to give them a 21 - point lead , which was increased early in the fourth quarter with a Carmody field goal . Palko answered for the Panthers with a 21 - yard touchdown pass , but Brohm stopped any chance of a comeback with a 75 - yard touchdown pass later in the quarter , giving the Cardinals a 48 - 24 win . After the win , the Cardinals moved to seventh in the nation . Connecticut . The Cardinals last regular season game was against the Connecticut Huskies , led by eighth - year head coach Randy Edsall and quarterback Matt Bonislawski . The Cardinals took an early lead on an Allen touchdown run . The Huskies scored on a field goal , but the Cardinals answered with their own field goal to keep a 7 - point lead . In the second quarter , after Brohm threw a long touchdown , and the Huskies answered with a Lou Allen run , the Cardinals opened scoring with another touchdown pass by Brohm and a second field goal by Carmody . The Cardinals took a 27 - 10 lead into halftime . In the second half the Cardinals scored three times without being answered by the Huskies , including two more Brohm Touchdown passes and a second running touchdown by Anthony Allen . The Huskies finally scored again , late in the fourth quarter , on a run by Terry Cauley , however it was not enough and the Cardinals won , 48 - 17 . With the win and Rutgers ' loss to West Virginia , the Cardinals won the Big East and the conference ' s spot in the BCS . With the win , the Cardinals were ranked sixth in the BCS standings . Orange Bowl . Winning the Big East , the Cardinals were invited to the Orange Bowl to face the ACC champion and No . 15 ranked Wake Forest Demon Deacons . The Deacons were led by fifth - year head coach Jim Grobe and quarterback Riley Skinner . The Deacons took an early lead with a field goal , however the Cardinals answered with their own field goal and a touchdown in the first quarter to take a 10 - 3 lead to halftime . In the third quarter , Skinner tied the game on a 30 - yard touchdown pass and took a three point lead in the fourth after a 36 - yard field goal . The lead didn ' t last long though , as the Cardinals scored a quick touchdown on a rush by Anthony Allen and another one later in the quarter on a rush by Brock Bolen . With the scores the Cardinals took a 24 - 13 win , their first in a BCS bowl game . Post - Season . Coaching changes . Almost a week after their victory in the Orange Bowl , head coach , Bobby Petrino , was offered and took the head coaching position with the NFL ' s Atlanta Falcons . Two days later , Steve Kragthorpe , former head coach for the Tulsa Golden Hurricanes , was hired for the position . Awards . Conference . After the season , the Big East media announced that seven Cardinals were named to the First Team All Big East , and four others were named to the Second Team . Included on the first team were Harry Douglas , Renardo Foster , Kurt Quarterman , George Bussey , Art Carmody , William Gay , and Amobi Okoye , who was a unanimous selection . The seven were the most in the league . National . After the season , head coach Bobby Petrino and quarterback Brian Brohm were each honored as a finalist and semifinalist for prestigious national awards . Before leaving , Petrino was named as a finalist for the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year award , and Brian Brohm was named as a semifinalist for the Davey O ' Brien Award . Finally , kicker Art Carmody was honored as winner of the Lou Groza Award . Included in the honors , three players were named to an All - America team . Carmody and Amobi Okoye were both named by the AP on their second team , while Kurt Quarterman was named to the third team . Roster changes . In the 2007 NFL Draft , four former Cardinal starters were selected . Amobi Okoye became the highest draft pick in school history when he was selected tenth in the draft by Houston . Michael Bush , who had a medical redshirt and was eligible for another year , decided to leave , and was selected in the fourth round by Oakland . Kolby Smith and William Gay were both selected in the fifth round , Smith by Kansas City and Gay by Pittsburgh .