CARDINALS

Takeaways from Bobby Petrino's bowl preview

Jeff Greer

Louisville Courier Journal

Coach Bobby Petrino will lead his 9-3 Cardinals into a showdown with the 9-3 Bulldogs.

Louisville coach Bobby Petrino, offensive coordinator Garrick McGee and defensive coordinator Todd Grantham all spoke to the media on Tuesday, along with Belk Bowl executive director Will Webb.

Here are three quick takeaways from Petrino's chat:

No QB decision just yet. This is nothing new, but Petrino did say that freshman QB Reggie Bonnafon has been working out again and has good range of motion and movement in his leg after suffering what Petrino called a "really bad bone bruise" in his knee against UK. Petrino said they'll keep monitoring Bonnafon's progress and will make a decision on starting him or Kyle Bolin much closer to the bowl game.

To truly make an informed decision, McGee said, Bonnafon must show that he can be an efficient runner and take repeated hits. He also said that "there could be more of an emphasis on certain things" with one or the other in the game, but the playbook's the same.

Petrino on Holliman. Bobby Petrino didn't directly answer a question about a report saying redshirt sophomore safety Gerod Holliman would forgo his final two years of eligibility and declare for the 2015 NFL draft. He did say, though, that U of L uses an NFL draft consultant to help their players and their families learn about the process and prepare for dealing with agents and NFL teams.

Preparing for UGA. Petrino said Georgia being Louisville's opponent for the Belk Bowl was easy motivation for the players to get up for the game. The Cardinals practiced Friday and Saturday and spent the past two days game planning for the Bulldogs, a process that makes Petrino "nervous." Why nervous? "Well, they're a really good football team," he said.