Professional football (gridiron) Louis Cardinals moved to Phoenix, Arizona to become the Arizona Cardinals in 1988, while the Houston Oilers very nearly moved to Jacksonville in 1987 before deciding to stay, for the short term, in Houston. In 1993, the NFL began exploring expansion, eyeing five proposals (Baltimore, St. Louis, Memphis, Charlotte and Jacksonville), all of which were in cities that had hosted professional football before. The "Carolina Cougars" (later renamed Carolina Panthers) and Jacksonville Jaguars received franchises to begin play in 1995. At the same time, Al Davis moved the Raiders back to its original home in Oakland for the 1995 season,
2012 Louisville Cardinals football team game. They were invited to the Sugar Bowl where they defeated Florida. The Cardinals finished the 2011 season 7–6, and a 5–2 record in Big East play gave them a share of the conference championship with Cincinnati and West Virginia. Due to tiebreaking procedures, the Cardinals did not receive the Big East's automatic bid into a BCS bowl (West Virginia received the bid). The Cardinals were instead invited to the Belk Bowl where they were defeated by North Carolina State 24–31. 2012 Louisville Cardinals football team The 2012 Louisville Cardinals football team represented the University of Louisville in the 2012