Louisville Cardinals Odds

Louisville Cardinals 2024 Season Preview

The Louisville Cardinals had a tremendous first season under Jeff Brohm in 2023. They finished 10-4, but came up short in the ACC Championship Game and the Holiday Bowl. However, the second year under Brohm looks to be even more promising. 

Brohm has shown that he can build through the transfer portal. He did it last year with Jack Plummer, and has now reloaded the offense heading into this season. The biggest addition is Tyler Shough from Texas Tech. Shough has shown he's a dynamic playmaker when on the field, but his career has been riddled with injures. 

However, Shough will have a revamped recieving corps to play with as Caullin Lacy, Ja'Corey Brooks and Mark Redman all joined the Cardinals from the transfer portal as well. Lastly, we can't forget about the running game, Maurice Turner is the veteran and he will be spelled by Miami transfer Donald Chaney. 

Defensively, the Cardinals took a big leap in 2023 under DC Ron English. Louisville was the top team in the ACC in total defense as they stufffed rushing attacks. Though, that is not all they did as they have a star on the defensive line in Ashton Gillotte who racked up 11 sacks last season. 

Special teams have experienced some changes, with the departure of punter Mark Vassett and kicker James Turner. Brock Travelstead is set to handle most of the kickoffs, and transfer Kevin Coleman is expected to contribute as a return specialist.

Last year the Cardinals were quick learners under Brohm and it led to success, but they have a whole new challenge ahed of them in the revamped ACC. There's no doubting they will be competitive and have the upside to make noise down the stretch. 

Louisville Cardinals Point Spreads

Despite their poor overall record, betting on Cardinals spreads was a profitable venture last year. This is important since spread bets are one of the most popular bets in the U.S. Spread bets are bets based on the margin of victory that sportsbooks expect in a game.

Here’s an example for a past Cards game vs. Pittsburgh.

• Louisville +3 (-110)
• Pittsburgh -3 (-110)

The Cardinals lost the game, 23-20, making the bet a tie or a push. This means bettors on either side got their money back. For Cardinals bets to have won, they would’ve needed to win the game or lose by one or two points. Pittsburgh backers would have needed a win by four or more for their bets to cash.

Louisville Cardinals Over/Unders

Another popular bet that can be made on college football games is an over/under or total bet. With these bets, neither the winner of the game nor the winning margin matter. Instead, you’re betting on the combined scoring of the teams.

Using their game against Georgia Tech as an example, books set the total at 54. The game finished 39-34 for Tech for a combined 73 points. This was a winner for anyone who bet the over. Had the teams combined for fewer than 63 points, under bets would have cashed; if it landed at exactly 63, both sides would've gotten their stake back.

Louisville Cardinals Moneylines

Another common college football bet is a moneyline bet. Instead of handicapping a team by a certain number of points, oddsmakers adjust the payout based on the chances either team has of winning.

Moneyline bets are easiest to understand if you think in units of $100. Were the Cardinals to defeat Georgia Tech as +150 underdogs, a $100 bet would profit $150. Had they been -150 favorites instead, you’d need to bet $150 to have a chance at a $100 return.

Louisville Cardinals Props

If you have a favorite Cardinal and want to bet on his stats for the game, look at proposition, or prop, bets. Like over/unders, prop bets are bets on whether more or less of something will happen than the books are expecting.

College football player props are far less common than NFL ones, so make sure to find a sportsbook that offers them.

Louisville Cardinals Futures

You can also bet on a variety of end-of-season results for the Cardinals. These are called futures bets.

Some Cardinals futures bets available include, among others, their odds to win the ACC, win the national title, or go over a certain number of wins for the season. These bets are priced like moneylines to reflect how likely they are to happen.