Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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60 PRESEASON 2019 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY LOU SOMOGYI OPENING NIGHT Since the post-World War II era in 1946, this year 's game at Louis- ville will mark the 15th time Notre Dame will open a new football sea- son against a head coach making his debut for the opponent. Forty-six-year-old Scott Satterfield could have continued an already suc- cessful head coaching career at his alma mater Appalachian State while residing in his native North Carolina. Instead, he opted to take on the challenge of rebuilding a Louisville program that entering the 2019 foot- ball season boasts the second-lon- gest losing streak nationally in the Football Bowl Subdivision with nine straight, behind only Rutgers' 11. Furthermore, in those last nine con- tests of 2018, the Cardinals were out- scored 494-172, an average of 55-19 a game. It quickly became sobering to Satterfield that his talent base at Sun Belt Conference school and more re- cent Football Bowl Subdivision mem- ber Appalachian State wasn't much different than at Power Five school Louisville. In fact, the roster probably was even better balanced. "We had eight scholarship linemen [when I first showed up]," Satterfield told WDRB's Eric Crawford at ACC Media Days held in Charlotte, N.C. "That blows my mind. They had 15 receivers on scholarship. Those should be reversed. … Some of the talent at App State probably would start in front of these guys. And then the other way around with some. "I just anticipated these guys would be a lot better, and it wasn't the case." Louisville's incoming freshman class was ranked 77th by Rivals, but the previous years were relatively solid from a rankings standpoint of 32, 36, 29 and 31. Meanwhile, the Mountaineers dis- played just how competitive they were with an 11-2 record last year that began with a 45-38 overtime de- feat at No. 10 Penn State after lead- ing the Nittany Lions 31-17 early in the fourth quarter and taking a 38-31 advantage again with just 1:47 left. Born in Hillsborough, N.C., Sat- terfield was bred in the Tar Heel State and matriculated to App State in Boone, N.C., where he started 27 games at quarterback under head coach Jerry Moore, who led the school to three Division I-AA na- tional titles in 2005-07 (they upset No. 5 Michigan in the 2007 opener) before getting inducted into the Col- lege Football Hall of Fame in 2014. Satterfield joined Moore's coaching staff in 1998 and was the play caller during the halcyon period from 2004- 08 while making the transition from the Power-I to a spread formation. Satterfield spent 2009 as the quar- terbacks coach and passing game coordinator at Toledo and then of- fensive coordinator at Florida Inter- national (2010-11) before returning to his alma mater in 2012 and getting promoted to head coach in 2013. Following a slow start with 4-8 and 7-5 final records, Satterfield guided App State to a 40-11 ledger and three Sun Belt titles the past four cam- paigns. First-year head coaches at a new school debuting against Notre Dame are 1-13 since World War II. The lone victor was Missouri's Warren Pow- ers in 1978, a stunning 3-0 defeat of the reigning national champion and No. 5-ranked Fighting Irish, led by quarterback Joe Montana, in Notre Dame Stadium. At least one other coach prior to World War II achieved the feat — Notre Dame graduate Jack Chevi- gny won his debut at Texas in 1934 against first-year Irish head coach Elmer Layden. Since the turn of the century, Notre Dame has faced four other head coaches making debuts at their GAME PREVIEW: LOUISVILLE Top STorylineS Predictions Todd Burlage: Notre Dame 40, Louisville 3 This is a case of two programs being in very different places, with Notre Dame establishing a 22-4 mark the past two years after the 4-8 debacle in 2016, and the Cardinals in a free fall that resulted in the ouster of former head coach Bobby Petrino. Bryan Driskell: Notre Dame 47, Louisville 20 Louisville has enough offensive firepower to possibly keep it close for a little while, but the Fighting Irish will exploit the Cardinals' poor defense and eventually win big. Andrew Mentock: Notre Dame 33, Louisville 13 After ending last season with five consecutive losses by 30 or more points, the Cardinals will do their best to slow the game down and limit Notre Dame's overall possessions. With that said, the Irish of- fense will prove to be too potent. Lou Somogyi: Notre Dame 38, Louisville 17 The Cardinals might have an initial emotional surge under a new regime and with an enthusiastic crowd, but as the game progresses Notre Dame's superiority and depth should take control. Vince DeDario: Notre Dame 45, Louisville 10 This is going to be a coming out party for the Notre Dame offense. The Cardinals gave up more than 44 points and just shy of 500 yards per game last year. It might take a couple series for the Irish defense to take hold, but their speed and athleticism will overwhelm Louisville. Satterfield took on the job of rebuilding the Louisville program after compiling a 51-24 record and winning all three of the bowl games his teams reached and he coached in during his six seasons at Appalachian State. PHOTO COURTESY LOUISVILLE