The Louisville Cardinals want to return to their years of dominance atop the college basketball game and looked far and wide to find the right man. Coaches have expressed interest in bringing the Cards back to their glory days, but the program took their time in identifying the man who would lead the team.
They finally found their man, and it’s a name that would surprise several college hoops fans. However, his performance as a head coach shows that he is more than capable of bringing the team back to the top of the game.
Louisville Cardinals select Pat Kelsey to become their head coach
The Cardinals are reportedly moving forward with College of Charleston head coach Pat Kelsey to take over the program and take them back to relevance in the collegiate basketball map.
Kelsey is a qualified head coach whose wealth of experience will serve him well during his reign as the head coach. He started his career with Winthrop, where he turned the program into a Big South powerhouse before moving to the College of Charleston. He continued his excellent work with the Cougars, where they made back-to-back Marck Madness tournaments for the first time since 1999.
Kelsey wasn’t the Cardinals’ first choice to take over
While Kelsey is a great signing for the Louisville Cardinals, he wasn’t the first choice for the program. Gary Parrish of CBS Sports reveals the number of coaches they approached before they had to settle with their new head coach:
The Cardinals wanted Scott Drew — but he instead wanted to stay at Baylor. The Cardinals wanted FAU coach Dusty May — but he instead wanted to move to Michigan. Depending on the source, at least one or two or 20,000 other people directly or indirectly passed on the job before Louisville turned to Kelsey, who has been a Division I coach for 12 years but never won an NCAA Tournament game.
While Pat Kelsey wasn’t the first choice for the Cardinals, he has showcased the ability to turn around a basketball program into a competitive one. This is the break both parties need to reach their ultimate goal, which is winning the national title.
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