History of the Arizona Cardinals Devil Stadium. Tragedy struck the team on April 22, 2004 when former safety Pat Tillman, a popular player who was an All-American at Arizona State, was killed in Afghanistan while serving in the United States Army. Tillman left professional football following the 2001 season to serve in the military in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks. Tillman became the first NFL player to lose his life in war since Buffalo Bills offensive tackle Bob Kalsu died in 1970 during the Vietnam War. Tillman's jersey number 40 was retired at the Cardinals' first home game of 2004. In early
2004 Louisville Cardinals football team 2004 Louisville Cardinals football team The 2004 Louisville Cardinals football team represented the University of Louisville in the 2004 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team, led by Bobby Petrino in his second year at the school, played their home games in Papa John's Cardinal Stadium. They finished 11–1 and were the Conference USA champions with a perfect 8–0 conference record in their last season before leaving to join the Big East Conference. They were invited to and won the Liberty Bowl, defeating Western Athletic Conference champion Boise State 44–40. The Cardinals finished the 2003 season with a 9–4 record,