Louisville football shuts out Murray State in Jeff Brohm's first home game leading program

There was fire, Louie the Cardinal parachuting onto the field and a Black Out crowd of 45,273 at L&N Stadium for coach Jeff Brohm’s homecoming.

Louisville’s home opener Thursday night had all the bells and whistles, capped by a commanding 56-0 win over Murray State.

The victory marked the program’s first 2-0 start since 2017 and first shutout since beating Syracuse 30-0 on Nov. 20, 2020.

Brohm’s first game in Louisville also saw U of L football’s largest home crowd since 46,459 people watched the Cardinals fall to Florida State 35-31 last year.

"Winning the first game, it was good to get that one under our belt, especially under the circumstances we did," Brohm said. "To come home and do what we're supposed to do, it's great. Winning has to matter. Myself, coaches and players need to really hate losing and make sure that we do everything within our power to try not to lose. It's got to drive us, motivate us to work hard."

ACC commissioner Jim Phillips got in on the fun as he chatted with Brohm’s father, Oscar Brohm, and Louisville athletic director Josh Heird throughout the evening. He was one of many spectators who piled into L&N Stadium right up until kickoff.

They were given a show. And in the dominant win, running back Jawhar Jordan was the star.

The junior sent the crowd in an uproar with a 72-yard touchdown run just before halftime to make it a 28-0 game. By the time his night was over, the Arizona native had contributed 135 yards and two touchdowns on seven carries, averaging 19.3 yards per tote, in addition to 43 yards on two receptions.

Then there was Louisville’s receiving corps, once again led by Jamari Thrash. The Georgia State transfer racked up 82 yards on three receptions and was one of eight pass catchers at quarterback Jack Plummer’s disposal. They helped Plummer to five throws of 20 or more yards, with the longest (73) going to Thrash for a 21-0 game in the second quarter.

It was a great night for the receivers to be on display, as former Cardinals wideout Ernest Givins’ No. 29 jersey was honored. Givins (1984-85) totaled 1,266 yards on 67 catches and was a standout return specialist during his time at Louisville.

Fast forward nearly four decades and Kevin Coleman played a similar role for Louisville. He caught four punts while recording two catches for 32 yards, including a highlight-reel one-handed grab for 30 yards early in the first quarter.

Even with the game handily on the side of Louisville 56-0 with 7:45 to go, the remaining crowd gave a hearty cheer when freshman quarterback Pierce Clarkson entered the game. The former four-star prospect and key recruiter for the Cardinals was one of nine quarterbacks to enter the game, though Plummer, Brock Domann, Harrison Bailey and Brady Allen were the only others to record a pass.

"It's hard to get in nine quarterbacks but we did, and it was great to see them play," Brohm said. "When you're up on a team, you want to get the reserves and backups in as much as you can. ... They can use this as a great learning tool and we've got to continue to progress those guys. At some point, we're going to need them. You never know when, and in order to be a great football team, depth is very important."

Louisville will have a nine-day break before playing Indiana on Sept. 16 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

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

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Jeff Brohm and Louisville football blank Murray State at L&N Stadium