Pat Forde Finds Charlie Strong Intriguing; I Wholeheartedly Agree

Pat Forde of Yahoo! Sports is slowly but surely getting back into the swing of things since his return from London, where he covered the Olympics. This afternoon he posted “Forde’s 25 most intriguing coaches.” Forde ranked the 25 coaches that will spend a good amount of time in the spotlight in 2012.  Louisville head coach Charlie Strong came in at #21 on Forde’s list.

21. Charlie Strong, Louisville

A guy who couldn’t get a job for years has the Cardinals poised for a breakthrough season as the Big East favorites. That likely would change the don’t-call-us-we’ll-call-you dynamic with athletic directors who snubbed him before. Would Strong entertain offers from bigger programs or stay loyal to the guy who gave him his chance, Tom Jurich?

Calling Charlie Strong intriguing is an extreme understatement. The man reeks of awesomeness. I wasn’t around during the Schnelly days, but it’s hard for me to imagine a coach at the University of Louisville that has won the fans over like Charlie Strong has in his first few years. This takes me back to one of my first original Cardinal Connect posts, “The Awesomeness of Charlie Strong.”

• Charlie Strong doesn’t take showers; he makes Joker Phillips give him a piggy back ride through the car wash.
• Charlie Strong is the only person to ever slam the revolving doors on the University of Louisville campus.
• Charlie Strong spent seven seasons coaching in the state of Florida. He never sweated. Not once.
• Charlie Strong, along with the help of Vance Bedford will soon design a defensive scheme that will force opponents to punt on first down.