CBS Sports Places Scott Satterfield at No. 11 in 2021 ACC Coach Rankings

Heading into his third year as the head coach of the Louisville football program, Scott Satterfield has taken a tumble in the 2021 iteration of CBS Sports' ACC Coach Rankings.

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LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Heading into the 2020 season, there was a palpable buzz surrounding Louisville football program. The Cardinals had just orchestrated a remarkable turnaround in year one under new head coach Scott Satterfield, with him winning ACC Coach of the Year after guiding Louisville to an 8-5 record in 2019 after they had gone 2-10 the year before.

Unfortunately, Louisville failed to live up to expectations in their 2020 campaign. Fueled primarily by one of the worst turnover margins in FBS and offensive predictability, the Cardinals finished just 4-7 on the year and 3-7 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

As a result, Satterfield's good graces among those in college football media has taken a bit of a tumble. The folks over at CBS Sports recently ranked every Power Five from 1-65, including the 14 in the ACC, and Satterfield found himself at No. 11 in the ACC and No. 45 overall.

"With so much buzz around the Cardinals heading into last year, there was to bound to be a significant reaction when the team finished 4-7 and in 12th place in the ACC standings," CBS Sports' Chip Patterson wrote. "My guess is that we overreacted to a solo second place finish in the ACC Atlantic Division in Year 1 and then overreacted the other way when Louisville didn't meet or exceed the expectations set by 2019's success."

While Satterfield's 14-spot drop in the overall rankings was the second-biggest fall (FSU's Mike Norvell at -15), Patterson does offer Louisville fans some solace. He believes that Satterfield could jump back into the 30s "after a year that splits the difference between the highs and lows of his early Louisville tenure".

Louisville will kickoff the 2021 season against Ole Miss in the annual Chick-Fil-A Kickoff Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga. on Monday, Sept. 6.

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Matthew McGavic
MATTHEW MCGAVIC

McGavic is a 2016 Sport Administration graduate of the University of Louisville, and a native of the Derby City. He has been covering the Cardinals in various capacities since 2017, with a brief stop in Atlanta, Ga. on the Georgia Tech beat. He is also a co-host of the 'From The Pink Seats' podcast on the State of Louisville network. Video gamer, bourbon drinker and dog lover. Find him on Twitter at @Matt_McGavic