Monday afternoon Cardinal news and notes

—The Louisville baseball team played three extremely dramatic games at No. 2 Clemson over the weekend. The Cards took the final game of the series in 12 innings on Saturday.

—The Cards are No. 19 in the latest D1Baseball.com top 25 poll.

—The week ahead in Cardinal athletics:

Tuesday, April 22

Softball vs. Western Kentucky - 6 p.m. ET (Ulmer Stadium)
#17 Baseball at Kentucky - 6:30 p.m. ET

Thursday, April 24

Men’s Golf at ACC Championships

Friday, April 25

Track&Field at Payton Jordan Invitational
Men’s Golf at ACC Championships
Rowing at Lake Wheeler Invitational
Track&Field at Jim Freeman/Clark Wood Invitational (Owsley B. Frazier Cardinal Park)
Softball vs. #8 Florida State - 6 p.m. ET (Ulmer Stadium)
#17 Baseball vs. #7 Florida State - 6 p.m. ET (Jim Patterson Stadium)

Saturday, April 26

Men’s Golf at ACC Championships
Rowing at Lake Wheeler Invitational
Track&Field at Jim Freeman/Clark Wood Invitational (Owsley B. Frazier Cardinal Park)
Softball vs. #8 Florida State - 1 p.m. ET (Ulmer Stadium)
#17 Baseball vs. #7 Florida State - 2 p.m. ET (Jim Patterson Stadium)

Sunday, April 27

Men’s Golf at ACC Championships
#17 Baseball vs. #7 Florida State - 3 p.m. ET (Jim Patterson Stadium)
Softball vs. #8 Florida State - 6 p.m. ET (Ulmer Stadium)

—Louisville’s Justin Thomas ended a near three-year drought with a dramatic win at the RBC Heritage in Hilton Head on Sunday.

—The Nate Ament saga finally came to an end on Sunday with the five-star forward committing to Tennessee.

—The Athletic highlights the five best transfer portal fits in college basketball, and Adrian Wooley to Louisville makes the cut.

Adrian Wooley, Louisville

2024-25 stats (at Kennesaw State): 18.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.4 steals per game while shooting 42.2 percent from 3 and 76.9 percent from the free-throw line.

The Athletic transfer portal rank: No. 23

I’m no math expert, but it doesn’t take a genius to pick up patterns this obvious.

This season, during Pat Kelsey’s inaugural campaign at Louisville, the Cards took 74.7 percent of their shots either at the rim or from 3. And in his freshman season with the Owls, in which the 6-foot-5 Wooley won Conference USA Rookie of the Year, the Alabama native took 76.6 percent of his shots either at the rim or from 3.

That’s more than a Venn diagram; that’s two overlapping circles.

Louisville has added a bevy of high-profile guards this offseason — Ryan Conwell (Xavier) and Isaac McKneely (Virginia) from the transfer portal, plus top-10 high school recruit Mikel Brown Jr. — but Wooley’s game is as tailor-made for Kelsey’s system as any of them. Louisville was third among all high-major teams in 3-point attempt rate this season, per KenPom, with a staggering 47.8 percent of its shots coming from deep. Wooley’s ability to shoot on or off the ball should blend perfectly with that offensive philosophy.

Per Synergy, Wooley was in the 75th percentile or better nationally in all four of his most-frequent offensive actions, but he was “excellent” as both a pick-and-roll handler and a spot-up shooter. The latter is sort of obvious: Wooley was one of 55 players across all of Division I this season who attempted at least five 3s per game and made 41 percent or more of them. (Some notable others? Conwell and McKneely. Kelsey has a type.) But given the number of shooters around him, I’m almost more fascinated in how Wooley’s pick-and-roll game will translate. The tape is encouraging, even considering he could afford to pack more muscle onto his 180-pound frame. Wooley scored half of his 28 points against Liberty in the CUSA tournament off pick-and-rolls, per Synergy ...

How all those guards shake out in Louisville’s rotation remains TBD, but Wooley’s fit as someone who can do it all — perhaps to a greater extent than any of Conwell, McKneely or Brown — means he’ll have a prominent role on a team that will begin next season ranked in the top 10.

—On3 currently ranks Louisville’s 2026 football recruiting class as the 20th-best in the country.

—Louisville football added a big piece over the weekend with the commitment of NC State WR transfer Dacari Collins.

—Former New Mexico State defensive end Justin Beadles is lining up a visit to Louisville.

—This is cool.

—Spots are now available for this summer’s Pat Kelsey basketball camps.

—Former Louisville offensive lineman Austin Collins has transferred to Syracuse.

—TV ratings potentially factoring into what teams make the College Football Playoff is the latest sign that the powers that be are hellbent on trying to ruin the sport.

What formats are under consideration?

The current 12-team model and another 14-team model that includes guaranteed spots for the Big Ten (four), SEC (four), ACC (two), Big 12 (two), Group of 5 (one) and one at-large spot (Notre Dame if it’s ranked high enough) have gained the most publicity, but multiple sources have indicated that some commissioners would like the CFP to present other options this week. It’s also possible other league leaders come to the table with ideas, as there is both private and public resistance to the idea of leagues having guaranteed spots to the postseason before the games are played.

One possibility, which could be viewed as a compromise, is having conferences earn automatic bids through their play each season. A model in which each Power 4 league can earn guaranteed spots through a combination of its teams’ overall records — and maybe even TV ratings, according to a source — could be presented. The highest-ranked conferences would earn the most automatic bids.

The Big Ten and SEC, though, have the bulk of control over the future format — a promise of power that was part of the last contract negotiation. There is some skepticism that any other ideas presented this week would be strong enough to win over Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti and SEC commissioner Greg Sankey.

—North Carolina transfer Ian Jackson has committed to St. John’s.

—Florida guard Denzel Aberdeen is headed to Kentucky.

—Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel declaring for the draft were not surprises, but Tyrese Proctor following suit means the Blue Devils will have an entirely new starting five in 2025-26.

—Every time I watch this kid I get more excited about the fall/winter.

—The Athletic’s Dane Brugler ranks the top 300 prospects for this week’s NFL Draft. Tyler Shough is No. 50, Ashton Gillotte is No. 78, and Quincy Riley is No. 94.

—ESPN’s latest NFL mock draft has Tyler Shough going in the third round, Quincy Riley in the fourth, and Ashton Gillotte in the fifth.

—Bruce Feldman says Shough going in the top 40 is more likely.

—Ashton Gillotte is an edge rusher who could make sense for the Baltimore Ravens.

—Tyler Shough probably won’t be the second quarterback selected in this year’s draft, but there are plenty of folks around the NFL who think he should be.

While there’s been a lot of talk about Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart being the next-best prospect, the coaches I spoke to didn’t see it that way.

“I like Tyler Shough better,” said OC No. 2. “I’m not saying he’s Joe Burrow, but he’s got some Joe Burrow to him. I think he has the best feet in this quarterback class. I know he’s had injuries, and if he didn’t, I think he’d be a first-round QB.”

The 6-5, 219-pound Shough ran a 4.63 40 at the NFL Scouting Combine, does have a lengthy injury history. He began his career at Oregon, where he spent three seasons before transferring to Texas Tech in 2021. He started three years there, but each was derailed by a season-ending injury. His age also has become a talking point; he’ll be 26 in September, making him older than Trevor Lawrence, Brock Purdy and C.J. Stroud.

“He’s probably the most pro-ready to go in and run an offense and be able to operate,” said passing game coordinator No. 1. “Some people bring up his age — nope, don’t care. This isn’t baseball, where you’re drafting 18-year-olds. He’s athletic. He’s a good interview. Smart. Arm talent is good.”

—Athlon’s final mock draft has Shough going to the Browns with the first pick of the second round. It also has Quincy Riley going in the third round, and Ashton Gillotte in the fourth.

—It’s been 100 years since the first radio broadcast of the Kentucky Derby. The CJ takes a look at what the experience was like for listeners.

—Journalism is the likely morning line favorite horse for the Derby. Here’s how a former sports editor of the Beverly Hills High School newspaper named him.

—Some strong running genes there.

—Legalized gambling has created multiple scandals both in the NBA and college basketball ranks. That’s probably not going to change anytime soon.

—The Louisville volleyball team wrapped up its spring season with a 4-set win over Kentucky.

—The Dan McDonnell Radio Show is back tonight from 6-7 at the Roosters on Shelbyville Rd. You can listen live on 970 WGTK or 93.9 The Ville.

—The CJ’s Brooks Holton makes a way too early starting lineup projection for Louisville basketball.

—Chucky Hepburn seemed to help his pro prospects at the Portsmouth Invitational.

—CBS says that Louisville-Clemson was the best football game of 2016. If it weren’t for all the, you know, cheating, I’d have to agree.

—U of L OL Makhete Gueye has entered the portal.

—Here’s an updated look at the U of L women’s basketball roster for 2025-26.

—And finally, the Mike Rutherford Show returns this afternoon from 3-6 on 1450 The Big X. Tap in.