Louisville Football: Couldn’t Finalize Games With Alabama, Texas A&M

Jan 02, 2013; New Orleans, LA, USA; Louisville Cardinals head coach Charlie Strong points to the fans as he leaves the field following the Cardinals 33-23 victory against the Florida Gators the Sugar Bowl at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Crystal LoGiudice-USA TODAY Sports

What’s the best, most efficient way to make sure big time programs won’t talk to you about future games?

Well, Louisville might soon find out.

Louisville football coach Charlie Strong, speaking to ESPN, took a near-kiss-and-tell approach in discussing missed opportunities on potential season-opening games against Texas A&M or Alabama.

The possibility of Strong’s comments being innocent and blown up into a bigger story disappear when, in the same story, Louisville QB Teddy Bridgewater talks about what might have been in a QB track meet opposite 2012 Heisman Trophy recipient Johnny Manziel.

Strong never reveals where the breakdown with Texas A&M, a game that would have taken place at Houston’s Reliant Stadium over opening weekend, took place. The story simply concludes that the game “could not be worked out.” Neither could a home-and-home series with Wisconsin be finalized.

The Alabama game reportedly fell apart when Virginia Tech decided to keep its season-opening date with the Crimson Tide — a decision the Hokies apparently did not make until QB Logan Thomas chose to return for his senior season. The Virginia Tech-Alabama game is the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. Louisville, Strong said, would have replaced Virginia Tech.

It’s hard to fathom that Frank Beamer is especially thrilled with it being widely known the Hokies would have backed out of its season-opening showdown with two-time defending national champion Alabama had Thomas decided to declare for the NFL. Louisville and Virginia Tech, of course, are slated to be fellow football conference members starting in 2014. This story is the first time at least I can remember that being written as fact, though the sourcing of the role Thomas played in the game was not directly revealed.

Strong said Louisville aimed to improve a non-conference schedule that currently features Kentucky, Ohio, Eastern Kentucky and Florida International. One reason Strong might have leaked the upgrade attempts could be trying to get out in front of criticism the Cardinals might face as the King of the Big East — a title dripping in sarcasm if not for their dominant Sugar Bowl victory over Florida last year.

Whatever the reason, it will be interesting to see if any national programs screen calls from Louisville football about scheduling non-conference games in the near future.