Louisville football head coach Scott Satterfield will have to mend some fences with players and recruits.
The back and forth between Scott Satterfield and South Carolina was enough to lose the good will of even the most optimistic Louisville football fan.
The Cardinals head coach confirmed to the Courier-Journal on Saturday that he traveled to Bowling Green, Kentucky to meet with South Carolina AD Ray Tanner. Satterfield called the meet-up a “conversation,” not an interview.
“I’ve kept Vince abreast to everything,” Satterfield told Cam Teague. “When they reached out, I told Vince they reached out, and I told him I wasn’t interested in talking to those guys. Well, they circled back in a week and so I said I would listen to what they had to say, and the reason being is that it’s a few hours away from my parents who are both getting older and I’ve seen them one time this whole year, although it’s a different type of year with COVID. I saw them one time this year — there’s a place close to home, my other son is not far away as well. I went to listen to a conversation and that’s what it is. I kept Vince abreast with that, too. I’m not trying to hide anything from anybody. I’m not that person.”
Mending relationships with players
Regardless of what Louisville football fans believe, however, what truly matters is what his players think of him.
Based on what was shared on social media Saturday, both players and coaches were surprised Satterfield answered the call from USC twice.
The majority of reactions from current Cardinals were eventually deleted. However, what remains is that Satterfield’s success at Louisville ultimately hinges on his relationship with current and future players.
On Saturday, Satterfield had a scheduled Zoom meeting with Louisville football’s current recruits. Undoubtedly one of the subjects on the minds of recruits is whether or not the team they are committed to will have the same coach when National Signing Day begins in two weeks.
This is only the beginning of conversations that Satterfield will have to have with current and future players.
The opinions of fans ultimately won’t matter very much if Satterfield continues to win the favor of his team. However, one would surmise that there is a long way to go until he can re-establish the trust within the program.
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