No. 24 Louisville vs No. 9 Ole Miss: GAMEDAY NOTES

It has been 257 days since the Louisville football team took the field. Tonight, an opportunity arises to elevate The Ville into the next tier of college football contenders for the 2026 season, as the Cards go to battle with the Ole Miss Rebels.

Sep 2, 2019; Louisville, KY, USA; A Louisville Cardinals cheerleader waves a flag following a Louisville touchdown in the first quarter against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Cardinal Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-USA TODAY Sports | USA TODAY Sports

The University of Louisville football team begins its 2026 campaign on Sunday night in the Music City Kickoff against No. 9/10 Ole Miss at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET and will be televised on ABC. Radio coverage will be available on 93.9 The Ville and 970 WGTK.

HOW TO FOLLOW

TV – ABC (Sean McDonough, Greg McElroy, Katie George)

Radio – 93.9 The Ville / 970 WGTK (Paul Rogers, Craig Swabek, Jody Demling)

National Radio – ESPN Radio (Mike Couzens, Max Stark, Marilyn Payne)

Live Stats – GoCards.com

Social – @LouisvilleFB

Oct 17, 2025; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Louisville Cardinals wide receiver Chris Bell (0) carries the football for a touchdown against the Miami Hurricanes during the fourth quarter at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

TEAM NOTES

Jeff Brohm leads the 24th-ranked Cardinals in his fourth season at the helm of his alma mater with a 28-12 record through three seasons.

Sunday night’s game marks the only ranked versus ranked matchup of Week 1. The Cardinals are 10-16 all-time in ranked matchups, most-recently dropping a 31-24 contest at Notre Dame in September of 2024.

Louisville is 9-29-1 all-time against Top 10 opponents, but 2-2 under Jeff Brohm including a 24-21 win at No. 2 Miami last year.

Louisville’s coach Jeff Brohm brings his team out onto the field against Virginia at L&N Stadium Saturday. Oct. 4, 2025 | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

NOTABLE NUMBERS
24 – The Cardinals open the season ranked 24th in the AP Poll, their first preseason AP ranking since 2017.

9 – UofL is just one of seven programs to win at least nine games in a Power Four/Five conference each of the last three years.

8.8 – Isaac Brown averaged 8.8 yards per carry last season, the top mark in the country by more than a yard.

2 – Louisville brought in 34 transfers during the offseason, ranking second in the On3 Transfer Portal Index.

8-4 – Jeff Brohm is 8-4 all-time in season-opening games, including a perfect 3-0 during his Louisville tenure.

Louisville Cardinals running back Isaac Brown (1) scores a big fourth quarter touchdown against James Madison during the Cards' second college football game Friday September 5, 2025 at L&N Credit Union Stadium in Louisville, Kentucky. The Cards beat the Dukes 28-14. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

INSIDE THE SERIES

Louisville and Ole Miss are meeting for just the second time when they square off in Nashville.

The only previous meeting between the two programs came opening the 2021 campaign in Atlanta.

Ole Miss jumped out to a 26-0 lead at halftime on its way to a 43-24 victory.

Malik Cunningham threw for 191 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 79 yards and two more scores.

Sep 6, 2021; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Mississippi Rebels linebacker Lakia Henry (0) tackles Louisville Cardinals quarterback Malik Cunningham (3) during the first half at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports | USA TODAY Sports

Defensive Coordinator Familiarity

When Mark Ivey puts on the headsets for his first game as the full-time defensive coordinator, he will be looking across the sideline at a familiar face. Bryan Brown, the defensive cooridnator for the Rebels has been on the same staff as Ivey for 11 seasons of their career.

Brown is entering his third season as the defesive coordinator at his alma mater. Him and Ivey were previously together at Louisville from 2019-2022 under Coach Scott Satterfield, and on staff together at Appalachain State from 2012-2018.

While it will be Ivey's first game as full-time defensive coordinator for The Ville, he did call the plays for Louisville in their 24-7 win over Cincinnati in the 2022 Fenway Bowl.

Louisville assistant coach Mark Ivey talked to the media on college football signing day. Feb. 6, 2019 Uofl Coaches12 Sam | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

THE BEST GAME OF WEEK ONE

When Louisville and Ole Miss square off the night before Labor Day, they’ll do so as the only ranked matchup of the opening weekend.

The Cardinals are 10-16 all-time in ranked matchups, including a 5-5 mark on a neutral field. The Music City Kickoff will be the fifth ranked versus ranked contest during Jeff Brohm’s tenure at Louisville. The Cardinals have split the previous four, most-recently losing a 31-24 contest at Notre Dame in September of 2024.