The University of Louisville finally got their man for football as the Cards announced the hiring of Scott Satterfield from Appalachian State.
Satterfield replaces Bobby Petrino, who was fired Nov. 11 after leading the Cardinals on an abysmal, 2-8 record. Scott has spent each of the past six seasons as Appalachian State’s head coach. He compiled a 51–24 record as the Mountaineers head coach and has won ten or more games in three of the past four campaigns. Appalachian State has three, straight conference titles. He was named Sun Belt Coach of the Year this season.
At age 45, Satterfield is fairly young. The former Mountaineers quarterback began his coaching career at ASU as a wide receivers coach in 1998. Now that he’s in the Atlantic Coast Conference, 2019 will be rough as Louisville has lost recruits.
Additionally, the recruiting demands are different, as NFL talent is now expected. Talent identification is more precise. The media and alumni responsibilities are greater. The spotlight is hotter. This is a guy who’s worked all but three of his 21 seasons as a coach in Boone, North Carolina. He now has a national audience viewing him.
Even so, Satterfield possesses an excellent offensive mind. ASU was a top-20 offense in 2018 in points-per-game. Turning to defense, Appalachian State has ranked in the Top 25 in scoring defense the last four seasons.
Louisville is known for offense, but their defense has long been a problem (discounting the Charlie Strong Era). If Satterfield can bring that same success to Louisville, the Cardinals will return to the top of the ACC sooner than later.
