Louisville Football: 5 reasons why Cardinals will stink in 2017

With Heisman winner Lamar Jackson back, Louisville football has naive hopes of winning the ACC this year. Here are five reasons why the Cardinals will stink in 2017.

In 2016, Louisville took strides toward challenging for the ACC Atlantic. Lamar Jackson won the Heisman Trophy, and the Cardinals tied for first in the division. But a six-point loss at Clemson, kept the Cardinals from playing Virginia Tech in Orlando. Time expired as Jackson was driving the Cardinals toward the winning points.

Bobby Petrino’s squad remains among the most talented in the ACC, especially with Jackson returning for what is likely his final season in 2017. But the Cardinals are still fighting an uphill battle to supplant Clemson and Florida State in the division.

Did the Cardinals miss their window of opportunity last season when they dropped their only conference game against eventual national champion Clemson? After that defeat, Louisville went undefeated through the rest of ACC play. But the Cardinals fell to Group of Five power Houston, state rival Kentucky, and LSU in the Citrus Bowl to go from 9-1 to 9-4 at the end of the season.

More: Game by game predictions for Louisville football in 2017

Was that swoon a sign of things to come? Petrino’s crew could be among the nation’s best teams, but they could also fall completely down the ACC hierarchy. Heisman campaigns are always hard to follow up, and nothing will come easy for the Cardinals.