Louisville football should view Boca Raton Bowl game as opportunity

Let’s be honest and upfront here: The Boca Raton Bowl isn’t the prize Louisville football was playing for when the season began. But the Cardinals‘ game against Toledo still can be a gift if handled the right way.

Of course, this used to be a no-brainer. Making a bowl was a reward for a successful regular season even after the proliferation of bowls and admission of 6-6 teams made some games seem more like participation trophies.

We’re in a new era now.

Bowl games that aren’t involved with the College Football Playoff don’t automatically evoke the celebration they once did. Even the ones that are played in preferred travel destinations.

UofL’s Jeff Brohm may have to coach up his players and boosters and sell all the reasons why it’s worth playing.

Bowl games, in this era, can be whatever Louisville wants to make out of them. The approach is what matters most.

If the Cardinals are disappointed by their draw, that will show early in the amount of players who opt out of the game or enter the transfer portal.

It will show in the energy the coaching staff brings to its preparation for the game while it juggles other duties like scouring the transfer portal for talent.

The transfer portal window doesn’t open until Jan. 2, but schools are already jockeying for position on players who have made their intent known.

Those are some of the passive ways to show disapproval that won’t really be known until the few couple weeks play out.

Louisville could have taken the extreme route, which, this season, is also known as the Notre Dame trail.

The Irish balked at playing in a bowl game altogether after narrowly missing the College Football Playoff.

But that was a mistake. The biggest boost for making a bowl game outside the CFP is for the extra weeks of practice.

Brohm can find out what he has at some positions, starting with the one that matters most.

Should quarterback Miller Moss opt out of playing (he was non-committal after the win over Kentucky in the regular-season finale), Deuce Adams would get another chance to prove his mettle.

Adams made his first career start in the loss at SMU, but even in his time preparing for that game, Moss was trying to play through a foot injury and get back for the game. It would be a different perspective for Adams to know he’s for sure QB1 going into the Boca Raton Bowl.

Maybe it could be the launching point of his career with a great performance in the game. Or maybe not. Harrison Bailey started in the Sun Bowl last season after Tyler Shough opted out. He threw for 164 yards and three touchdowns, then decided he didn’t want to compete against Moss and transferred to Florida.

Texas Tech last season was similar to the Cards from this year, taking an 8-4 record into the Liberty Bowl against Arkansas. Had the Red Raiders viewed it as a disappointment, they probably don’t use it as a springboard to fuel this year’s run to the Big 12 title and the fourth seed in the CFP.

This isn’t to say UofL will follow Texas Tech and make the playoff next season. But if the Cards treat this bowl opportunity the right way, who’s to say what’s in store for next year.

Reach sports columnist C.L. Brown at clbrown1@gannett.com, follow him on X at @CLBrownHoops and subscribe to his newsletter at profile.courier-journal.com/newsletters/cl-browns-latest to make sure you never miss one of his columns.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville football in Boca Raton Bowl game vs Toledo could be a gift

Louisville football should view Boca Raton Bowl game as opportunity

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