Jeff Brohm never got to play for Governor’s Cup. Can he lead Cards to streak-snapping win?

Jeff Brohm has been a Louisville fan his whole life.

He followed in his father Oscar’s footsteps and played quarterback for the Cardinals during the early 1990s.

But it wasn’t until after he graduated in 1994 that he witnessed the Governor’s Cup. The annual rivalry game between Louisville and Kentucky began in 1912 but went on a 70-year hiatus after Kentucky’s 29-0 win in 1924.

The former Cardinals quarterback monitored the renewed rivalry while pursuing a professional football-playing career. Then Brohm coached in it for six years (2003-08). He was a quarterbacks coach under Bobby Petrino (2003-06) then served as the assistant coach and passing game coordinator for a year (2007) before being promoted to offensive coordinator a year later for Steve Kragthorpe. Louisville went 4-2 against Kentucky during that span, which included three wins when Brohm’s younger brother, Brian, played for the Cardinals (2004-07).

The Cardinals’ biggest win during that era was a 59-28 home win over the Wildcats in the 2006 opener. Before running back Michael Bush broke his leg during the second half, he ran for 128 yards and three touchdowns. Brian Brohm, who returned from a knee injury in the previous season, threw for 254 yards and a score. That season, U of L had its first 12-win campaign, won the Big East and defeated Wake Forest in the Orange Bowl, 24-13.

After leaving Louisville to be the quarterbacks coach at Florida Atlantic in 2009, Jeff Brohm watched the rivalry game from afar but never lost his fandom. In his first season as the Cardinals’ head coach, Brohm has a chance to lead Louisville to its first win over Kentucky since 2017 when his squad hosts the Governor’s Cup at noon Saturday.

Louisville’s four consecutive losses to UK haven’t been close, either, with Kentucky outscoring the Cardinals, 179-57.

“I just think that they came ready to play, and they've won these last so many years,” Brohm said of Kentucky. “We've got to understand this is going to be a very talented football team that knows how to win football games (and) has competed against really good opponents all year long. … I just think that our team needs to understand it's going to take our best performance and a really good week of practice, and you can't think about anything else other than trying to prepare to win this game.”

U of L running backs coach Chris Barclay grew up around the rivalry. He likened the Governor’s Cup to the Super Bowl in terms of the magnitude of the game’s outcome for the community. Barclay, who graduated from Male High School, never played in the game but will be on opposite sidelines from Brad White, his former teammate at Wake Forest and Kentucky’s defensive coordinator.

Most Cardinals’ coaching staff members have a connection to the university or Louisville, which adds a layer of urgency to breaking Kentucky’s winning streak.

“In my opinion, this is the most important game of the rest of the season,” Brohm said. “We can talk about it all we want. This is the most important game, and our guys need to understand that preparing and trying to win this game needs to be the complete focus. If we want to make our fans happy (and) give them a good Thanksgiving, we've got to go win the game.”

Brohm’s success in prior rivalries bodes well for Louisville. He went 4-1 against Indiana as Purdue’s head coach. At Trinity High School, Brohm earned back-to-back 21-0 wins over rival St. Xavier, scoring two touchdowns — one each passing and rushing — as a junior in 1987 and three TDs — two passing, one rushing — as a senior.

“That's really one of the reasons you play sports is to provide entertainment, excitement for the fans, and to be able to at some point, at least for a year, brag on your team,” Brohm said, “and be able to come through in a big rivalry game where fans know each other, players know each other and there's just a whole lot of similarities within the whole mass of people.”

The Cardinals have had a prosperous season, including the program’s first win at Miami, first ACC championship game appearance and 10 wins for the seventh time. Yet Brohm knows winning the Governor’s Cup carries the most weight. Being a lifelong Louisville fan has helped give him a stronger perspective on the importance of the contest.

“The basketball rivalry is fun as well,” Brohm said. “It's just a really big game that means a lot to this state. You want to do your part to help your team win and be a part of that. This is a week across the country where there's a lot of rivalries going on, but this is a really big one. We're excited to get a chance to play in it, and we have plenty of work to do to get ready for it.”

U of L vs. UK football game: Governor's Cup story lines, odds, more

Reach Louisville football, women's basketball and baseball beat writer Alexis Cubit at acubit@gannett.com and follow her on X at @Alexis_Cubit.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville vs Kentucky football: Jeff Brohm brings perspective to game