Jeff Brohm Welcomes Rivalry with Indiana, Anticipates 'Competitive' Matchup vs. Louisville

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Rivalry week is here. It's just not the one that fans of the Louisville football program typically look forward to every year.

We still have several more weeks until the annual Governor's Cup showdown with Kentucky, but the Cardinals do have a matchup with a regional rival on tap for this weekend. Well-versed rivals over on the hardwood, Louisville and Indiana are set to face on the gridiron this Saturday.

The neutral site-matchup at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind. will be just the third matchup ever between the Cardinals and Hoosiers, and the first since a pair of matchups in 1985 and 1986 in Bloomington. It's also the first of a three-game series between the two, although it's a series that could end up being shortened.

This past January, WDRB's Rick Bozich reported that Indiana was interested in cancelling the entire series less than a year before it was set to begin. Last month, The Herald-Times' Michael Niziolek reported that, based on public records, Indiana and Louisville were in negotiations to cancel the 2025 matchup at Memorial Stadium. The 2024 matchup, which will take place at L&N Stadium, appears to be safe for now.

While Indiana's reasoning for wanting to cancel the series are not known, if it were up to Louisville head coach Jeff Brohm, the series would stay in place - and maybe be extended. He believes that the series between the two regional rivals is good for the fanbases involved.

"I think, for our fans' sake, anytime you can play some in-state rivalries, and some true rivalries regionally, it's always great to play," Brohm said. "It's great for the fan base, they want to see it, they're gonna come out and watch and support it. Sometimes there are players that know each other as well. I'm all for any type of regional rivalry that we can continue to keep, and even add to the mix. I think it's great for our fans, and for our team."

It also might have to do with the fact that Brohm had a 4-1 record against Indiana during his time at Purdue, who is IU's arch rival. Even though he is now at his alma mater, Brohm couldn't help but crack a small smile when asked if the Indiana-Purdue rivalry has carried over with him to Louisville.

However, instead of giving an answer that would get both fanbases riled up, Brohm chose the high ground and gave the Hoosiers plenty of praise.

"I have a lot of respect for Indiana, (head) coach (Tom) Allen and his football team," Brohm said. "You got to put the work in to win at a high level in the Big 10 at Indiana and Purdue. I understand that. Coach Allen loves the game. He has great passion for his players. We've got to go up there and win the football game.

"Nothing will be handed to us. It'll be a tough contest. They play great competition every year, so they're always battle tested. When you get them at the beginning of the year, they're going to be fresh and have a lot of guys healthy ready to go. When you watch the video and turn it on, they've played very well through two games. We're going to have to step up our level of play."

Indiana entered the season with a lot of uncertainty. After guiding the Hoosiers to a 6-2 record and the No. 12 final AP Poll ranking in 2020, Allen went just 6-18 over the 2021 and 2022 season, including a 4-8 mark last season. He entered the season sitting on one of the hotter seats in all of college football.

If the first two games of the season are any indicator, that seat might not be as hot as previously though.

The Hoosiers had a tall task right out of the gates, facing No. 3 Ohio State at home. However, the game wasn't a complete bloodbath like many thought it would be, and the Indiana defense - a speciality of Allen's - kept the Buckeyes relatively in check. Coming off of a season where they averaged 44.2 points and 490.7 yards per game, OSU could only muster 23 points and 380 yards of offense against IU. The next week, Indiana held Indiana State to just seven points and 93 yards, while collecting four sacks and seven tackles for loss.

“Indiana has always done a really good job on defense and they've had some really good years," Brohm said regarding the IU defense. "They've played at a high level and put up good statistics. They’ll come at you in a lot of different ways, give you a lot of different looks and blitz from a lot of different areas. I think when they're able to balance that with a productive offense, they can be dangerous."

While Indiana could only muster three points and 153 yards of offense against the Buckeyes, they bounced back in a big way against the Sycamores. Led primarily by quarterback Tayven Jackson, who was recently announced as the starting quarterback moving forward, the Hoosiers' option offense tallied 41 points and 558 yards against ISU.

"Jackson, who we recruited at Purdue, is a very talented quarterback who can throw and run," Brohm said. "With the dynamic back (Jaylin Lucas) they have in the backfield, it's very fast and elusive. They’ve been able to mix in some option concepts as well as their normal running and passing offense. So it makes you defend a lot of different elements. Every year we’ve played Indiana in the past, it's been a very tight football game and it goes down to the wire. So I think it makes you prepared for a lot of different things that they can throw at you.”

Expectations might have been low for Indiana heading into the season, especially when compared to ones that have been placed on Louisville's shoulders, but Brohm knows that the IU/UofL showdown will be a competitive one.

“I think our guys are excited to play a very competitive football game coming up this week against Indiana," he said. "Indiana is playing good football and Coach (Tom) Allen has done a good job. ... We're going to have our hands full. We've got to play good football, have a good week of practice and get ourselves ready to go.”

(Photo of Jeff Brohm: Scott Utterback - Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK)

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