On January 13, 2018, the Cardinals announced the hiring of Ryan Beard as new safeties coach .[3] Brian VanGorder as new defensive coordinator , replacing former DC Peter Sirmon .[4] [5]
On November 11 Louisville fired Bobby Petrino .
Notable departures from the 2017 squad included:
Cardinals who were picked in the 2019 NFL Draft:
Round Pick Player Position Team
The Cardinals signed a total of 23 recruits.
US college sports recruiting information for 2018 recruits Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date Marcus Riley WR Tallahassee, Florida James S. Rickards High School 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Jul 7, 2016 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Trenell Troutman S Miami, Florida St. Thomas Aquinas High School 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 188 lb (85 kg) Jul 9, 2016 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Michael Boykin DE Carrollton, Georgia Gulf Coast State College 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 285 lb (129 kg) May 19, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Yasir Abdullah LB Miami, Florida Carol City High School 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 220 lb (100 kg) May 28, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Jordan Travis QB West Palm Beach, Florida The Benjamin School 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jun 10, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Jared Goldwire DT Tacoma, Washington Fort Scott Community College 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 280 lb (130 kg) Jun 11, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Dejmi Dumervil-Jean DT Lauderdale Lakes, Florida St. Thomas Aquinas High School 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 350 lb (160 kg) Jun 11, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Robert Hicks LB Miami, Florida Central High School 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 237 lb (108 kg) Jul 4, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Thurman Geathers DE Acworth, Georgia North Cobb High School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 218 lb (99 kg) Jul 4, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Chandler Jones CB Miami, Florida Central High School 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 173 lb (78 kg) Jul 27, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Telly Plummer CB Riverdale, Georgia Langston Hughes High School 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jul 28, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Javian Hawkins RB Titusville, Florida Cocoa High School 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Aug 7, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Jarrett Jackson DE Palm Beach Gardens, Florida Palm Beach Gardens Community High School 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 275 lb (125 kg) Aug 14, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Tutu Atwell WR Miami, Florida Northwestern High School 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) 155 lb (70 kg) Aug 21, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Adonis Boone OT Daytona Beach, Florida Mainland High School 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 285 lb (129 kg) Sep 24, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Hassan Hall RB Atlanta, Georgia Maynard H. Jackson High School 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Oct 31, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Tyler Harrell WR Miami, Florida Columbus High School 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Nov 6, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Nigel Kilby TE Fort Wayne, Indiana Garden City Community College 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 250 lb (110 kg) Dec 10, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Allen Love DT Birmingham, Alabama Huffman High School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 285 lb (129 kg) Dec 14, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Quen Head LB Forsyth, Georgia Hutchinson Community College 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Dec 19, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Jatavious Harris WR Milledgeville, Georgia Baldwin High School 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 176 lb (80 kg) Dec 19, 2017 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Jairus Brents CB Louisville, Kentucky Waggener High School 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 178 lb (81 kg) Feb 7, 2018 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Marlon Character Jr. S Atlanta, Georgia Northwest Mississippi Community College 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Feb 7, 2018 Recruiting star ratings :Scout :Rivals :247Sports :ESPN :Overall recruiting rankings: Note : In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources:
Listed in the order that they were released
The ACC media poll was released on July 24, 2018.
Media poll (Atlantic) Predicted finish Team Votes (1st place) 1 Clemson 1,031 (145) 2 Florida State 789 (1) 3 NC State 712 (2) 4 Boston College 545 5 Louisville 422 6 Wake Forest 413 7 Syracuse 232
The Cardinals' 2018 schedule consisted of 7 home games and 5 away games, including the first game of the season being played in Orlando, Florida at Camping World Stadium , a neutral-site venue.[10] Alabama of the Southeastern Conference (SEC), before hosting the remaining three non-conference games; against FCS opponent Indiana State from the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC), Western Kentucky of Conference USA (C-USA) and against arch-rival Kentucky of the SEC.
Date Time Opponent Site TV Result Attendance September 1 8:00 p.m. vs. No. 1 Alabama * ABC L 14–51 57,280 September 8 7:00 p.m. Indiana State * ACCN Extra W 31–7 44,520 September 15 7:30 p.m. Western Kentucky * Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY ACCRSN W 20–17 54,923 September 22 12:30 p.m. at Virginia ACCRSN L 3–27 34,446 September 29 3:30 p.m. Florida State Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY ESPN2 L 24–28 52,798 7:00 p.m. Georgia Tech Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY ESPN L 31–66 51,658 October 13 12:30 p.m. at Boston College ACCRSN L 20–38 31,478 October 27 12:00 p.m. Wake Forest Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY ACCRSN L 35–56 49,603 November 3 12:00 p.m. at No. 2 Clemson ABC L 16–77 78,741 7:00 p.m. at No. 13 Syracuse ESPN2 L 23–54 42,797 November 17 12:20 p.m. NC State Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY ACCN L 10–52 48,265 November 24 7:00 p.m. No. 17 Kentucky * ESPN2 L 10–56 49,988 *Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time
1 2 3 4 Total Cardinals 0 0 7 7 14 No. 1 Crimson Tide 14 14 16 7 51
1 2 3 4 Total Sycamores 7 0 0 0 7 Cardinals 7 0 7 17 31
1 2 3 4 Total Hilltoppers 7 7 0 3 17 Cardinals 0 3 3 14 20
1 2 3 4 Total Cardinals 0 0 3 0 3 Cavaliers 0 6 7 14 27
1 2 3 4 Total Seminoles 7 0 7 14 28 Cardinals 7 14 3 0 24
1 2 3 4 Total Yellow Jackets 21 10 14 21 66 Cardinals 0 17 0 14 31
1 2 3 4 Total Cardinals 13 7 0 0 20 Eagles 14 10 0 14 38
1 2 3 4 Total Demon Deacons 21 14 21 0 56 Cardinals 7 14 14 0 35
1 2 3 4 Total Cardinals 3 0 6 7 16 No. 2 Tigers 14 21 28 14 77
1 2 3 4 Total Cardinals 0 7 7 9 23 No. 13 Orange 7 30 7 10 54
1 2 3 4 Total Wolfpack 7 10 21 14 52 Cardinals 3 0 0 7 10
1 2 3 4 Total No. 17 Wildcats 14 21 0 21 56 Cardinals 7 3 0 0 10
^ "Louisville dismisses Petrino amid 2–8 season" . November 11, 2018.^ "Scott Satterfield era at Louisville brings a needed infusion of belief" . The Courier-Journal .^ "Football Names Ryan Beard to Coach Safeties" . University of Louisville Athletics. 2018. Retrieved February 5, 2018 .^ "VanGorder Selected to Lead the Louisville Defense" . University of Louisville Athletics. 2018. Retrieved February 5, 2018 .^ "Grady Brown Named Defensive Assistant, Recruiting Coordinator" . University of Louisville Athletics. 2018. Retrieved February 5, 2018 .^ "2018 Biletnikoff Award Watch List" . July 19, 2018. Retrieved July 19, 2018 .^ "2018 John Mackey Award Preseason Watch List Released" (PDF) . July 20, 2018. Retrieved July 20, 2018 .^ "Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award Announces 2018 Preseason Watch List" . July 25, 2018. Archived from the original on August 17, 2009. Retrieved July 25, 2018 .^ "Wuerffel Trophy Unveils 2018 Watch List" . July 26, 2018. Archived from the original on July 26, 2018. Retrieved July 26, 2018 .^ a b "2018 Schedule" . GoCards.com. Retrieved February 5, 2018 .
