Louisville had no peers in C-USA

Playing its home games only yards from Churchill Downs, Louisville proved to be nothing short of a sure bet.

Originally Published: December 6, 2004

By Adam Rittenberg | Special to ESPN.com

Before the season any number of Conference USA teams could present strong arguments for why they'd claim the league championship.

Memphis pointed to its offensive backfield of QB Danny Wimprine and RB DeAngelo Williams. Texas Christian cited last year's impeccable start and an endless supply of skill players. Louisville boasted arguably the nation's best QB tandem (Stefan LeFors and Brian Brohm), while UAB had team leader Darrell Hackney healthy and raring to go. As for defending league champ Southern Miss? It returned another durable defense headlined by LB Michael Boley.

In the end, however, one team lapped the field. Playing its home games only yards from Churchill Downs, Louisville proved to be nothing short of a sure bet. The Cardinals led the league in nearly every relevant statistical category, including total offense (536.7), total defense (307.9) and average turnover margin (plus-1.27).

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