Kenny Payne’s stint as head coach of the Louisville Cardinals has been a disaster and he’s not going to get a chance to rectify the situation with the program, as he is reportedly expected to get fired from his job.
The news of his looking dismissal from the program started to circulate following Louisville’s 94-85 loss to the NC State Wolfpack in the first round of the ACC Tournament. The defeat seemed to be the final straw added to the haystack against the notion of keeping Payne as head coach.
Kenny Payne Gets Criticized After Final Game As Head Coach Of Louisville Cardinals
After the loss to the Wolfpack, Payne was asked about his thoughts on the idea of coming back for another year to coach the program. His response doesn’t seem to be earning him more fans.
First off, here’s how he answered it, per ESPN:
“For me, I go back to day one,” he said. “When I walked into the program as the new head coach, I talked about, I needed everybody on the same page. We sort of forgot that. I talked about how I’m not going to let you blame me. I’m not standing up here by myself. I need all of Louisville with me.
We sort of forgot that. I talked about, it’s going to take time, and I’m going to watch and see who jumped on and off the Titanic. We sort of forgot that. I gave a specific time. I said three or four years. And I’m good with that. That’s what I believed at that time, and that’s what I still believe it takes to fix this program.
“Maybe after you go 12-52 in two seasons at Louisville, don’t act like it’s everyone’s fault but your own. Thought this answer at Kenny Payne’s press conference tonight was embarrassing. Blamed everyone else and took zero accountability of his own,” said Sam Vecenie of The Athletic.
Here’s another one from Pat Ford of Sports Illustrated: “Giving up 94 to a mediocre team playing without its leading scorer is a fitting end to the Kenny Payne Era at Louisville.”
The Cardinals finished their 2023-24 NCAA campaign with just an 8-24 overall record and a 3-17 slate in ACC play. They are arguably the worst team among all major conference programs.
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