2021 Louisville Cardinals football team

The 2021 Louisville Cardinals football team represented the University of Louisville during the 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football season. This was the team's third season under head coach Scott Satterfield. The Cardinals played their home games at Cardinal Stadium in Louisville, Kentucky, and competed as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).

2021 Louisville Cardinals football
First Responder Bowl, L 28–31 vs. Air Force
Conference	Atlantic Coast Conference
Division	Atlantic Division
Record	6–7 (4–4 ACC)
Head coach	Scott Satterfield (3rd season)
Offensive scheme	Spread option
Defensive coordinator	Bryan Brown (3rd season)
Co-defensive coordinator	Cort Dennison (3rd season)
Base defense	4–2–5
Home stadium	Cardinal Stadium
Uniform

2021 Atlantic Coast Conference football standings

	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Atlantic Division
No. 15 Wake Forest xy		7	–	1					11	–	3
No. 20 NC State		6	–	2					9	–	3
No. 14 Clemson		6	–	2					10	–	3
Louisville		4	–	4					6	–	7
Florida State		4	–	4					5	–	7
Syracuse		2	–	6					5	–	7
Boston College		2	–	6					6	–	6
Coastal Division
No. 13 Pittsburgh xy$		7	–	1					11	–	3
Miami (FL)		5	–	3					7	–	5
Virginia		4	–	4					6	–	6
Virginia Tech		4	–	4					6	–	7
North Carolina		3	–	5					6	–	7
Georgia Tech		2	–	6					3	–	9
Duke		0	–	8					3	–	9
Championship: Pittsburgh 45, Wake Forest 21
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 6	8:00 p.m.	vs. Ole Miss*	Mercedes-Benz Stadium Atlanta, GA (Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game)	ESPN	L 24–43	30,709
September 11	7:00 p.m.	Eastern Kentucky*	Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY	ACCNX/ESPN+	W 30–3	37,673
September 17	7:30 p.m.	UCF*	Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY	ESPN	W 42–35	39,022
September 25	3:30 p.m.	at Florida State	Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL	ESPN2	W 31–23	50,964
October 2	12:30 p.m.	at No. 24 Wake Forest	Truist Field at Wake Forest Winston-Salem, NC	ACCRSN	L 34–37	29,077
October 9	3:00 p.m.	Virginia	Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY	ACCN	L 33–34	40,320
October 23	4:00 p.m.	Boston College	Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY	ACCN	W 28–14	38,202
October 30	7:30 p.m.	at NC State	Carter–Finley Stadium Raleigh, NC	ACCN	L 13–28	53,123
November 6	7:30 p.m.	Clemson	Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY	ACCN	L 24–30	51,729
November 13	12:00 p.m.	Syracuse	Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY	ACCRSN	W 41–3	43,797
November 18	7:30 p.m.	at Duke	Wallace Wade Stadium Durham, NC	ESPN	W 62–22	8,493
November 27	7:30 p.m.	Kentucky*	Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY (Governor's Cup)	ESPN2	L 21–52	55,018
December 28	3:15 p.m.	vs. Air Force*	Gerald J. Ford Stadium University Park, TX (First Responder Bowl)	ESPN	L 28–31	15,251
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Source:

Rankings

Further information: 2021 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	Final
AP	—	—	—	RV	RV	—
Coaches	—	—	—	—	RV	—
CFP	Not released																	Not released