Bobby Petrino fired: 5 candidates to be next Louisville football coach

4. Luke Fickell, Cincinnati Head Coach

Another branch on Meyer’s coaching tree, as Ohio Stae’s defensive coordinator/linebackers coach from 2012-2016, Fickell is 9-1 in his second season as head coach at Cincinnati as the Bearcats make a sneaky push for a significant bowl game heading into a big game against UCF next Saturday.

Cincinnati was no better than 80th in any defensive yardage category last year, and they were tied for 94th in the country scoring defense as they went 4-8. But things have improved substantially this year, as they are seventh in the country in total defense, seventh in scoring defense,15th against the pass and 10th against the run.

It’s the height of cliché’ that a coaching hire is typically the opposite of his predecessor. But with the problems they’ve had on that side of the ball this year, Louisville can’t be blamed for seeking candidates with a defensive acumen. Fickell fits that, and the Bearcats’ surge up the rankings defensively this year offers hope he could foster a similar quick turnaround for the Cardinals’ maligned unit.

Fickell may want to keep building something at Cincinnati before considering a step up to a higher profile job. But he has Power 5 school experience, with his deep roots at Ohio State as a player and coach, and Louisville may not be the only bigger school with interest in wooing Fickell.