American college football season
The 1981 Louisville Cardinals football team was an American football team that represented the University of Louisville as an independent during the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season . In their second season under head coach Bob Weber , the Cardinals compiled a 5–6 record and were outscored by a total of 212 to 180.[ 1]
The team's statistical leaders included Dean May with 589 passing yards, Don Craft with 475 rushing yards, Mark Clayton with 596 receiving yards, and Don Craft and Tony Blair with 42 points each.[ 2]
Date Opponent Site Result Attendance Source September 5 at No. 19 Florida State L 0–1750,735 September 12 Toledo W 31–6 September 19 Long Beach State Fairgrounds Stadium Louisville, KY W 35–1323,424 [ 3] September 26 at Missouri L 3–3457,448 October 3 Marshall Fairgrounds Stadium Louisville, KY W 36–0[ 4] October 10 at Memphis State W 14–7 October 17 Tennessee State Fairgrounds Stadium Louisville, KY L 30–4228,136 [ 5] October 24 at Oklahoma State L 11–19 November 7 Northeast Louisiana Fairgrounds Stadium Louisville, KY L 7–4015,994 [ 6] November 14 at Cincinnati L 0–24 November 21 No. 9 Southern Miss Fairgrounds Stadium Louisville, KY W 13–1012,940 [ 7] Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
1981 Louisville Cardinals football team roster Players Coaches Offense Defense Pos. # Name Class CB 1 Frank Minnifield Jr LB 2 Greg Jones Jr CB 34 Roger Clay Jr LB 39 Anthony Williams Jr DT 77 Pete McCartney So DT 97 Dan Williams Jr LB 99 Fred Blackmon Jr
Special teams Head coach Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt
^ "1981 Louisville Cardinals Schedule and Results" . SR/College Football . Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 30, 2020 . ^ "1981 Louisville Cardinals Statistics" . SR/College Football . Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 30, 2020 . ^ "Louisville 35, Long Beach St. 13" . The Los Angeles Times . Los Angeles, California. September 20, 1981. p. III-18. Retrieved February 10, 2017 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Louisville rolls over Marshall" . Messenger-Inquirer . October 4, 1981. Retrieved August 17, 2022 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "It comes to pass: Tennessee State strafes U of L 42–30" . The Courier-Journal . October 18, 1981. Retrieved February 29, 2024 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Northeast Louisiana hits U of L with 40–7 blitz" . The Courier-Journal . November 8, 1981. p. C1. Retrieved January 29, 2021 – via Newspapers.com . ^ "Going on TV put fight back in U of L" . The Courier-Journal . November 22, 1981. Retrieved March 25, 2021 – via Newspapers.com .
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