LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The new weight room is empty. Louisville’s 11th football practice of the spring is set to begin in less than an hour. But the big, flat-screen TVs on the first floor of the Trager Center are on. And they prominently display the core values the new coaching staff has brought here.



1. Project Positive Energy



Translation: A new day has dawned for Louisville football. Bobby Petrino’s gone. The dark cloud has been lifted from this building.



Coaching transitions often are about ditching the old script. The defensive guy who just got canned is replaced by an offensive mastermind, or the grizzled old coach is followed by the hot young coordinator. But there hasn’t been a 180-degree change like this in college football in years.



Petrino spent five years running things here in his second stint as the Cardinals’ coach. He took over after Charlie Strong left for Texas and left behind a roster of talent that...