Thanks to the infinite wisdom of Mitch Barnhart and Rich Brooks, both Kentucky and Louisville are going to the NFL system of scheduling this season. Both will play two exhibition games before kicking off the 10-game regular season against each other on Sept. 15 in Commonwealth Stadium.

The Cardinals open against Murray State Thursday night in Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium and the Wildcats follow suit against Eastern Kentucky on Saturday evening in Commonwealth. The best thing that can be said about both these, ah, contests is that all the money will be kept in the state.

The ticket prices for both exhibitions are the same as they would be for regular contests in which there’s a chance the home team might actually have to work up a good sweat. This is a classic example of both programs exploiting the loyalty of their fans, because it’s sure not about providing the best entertainment possible.

I understand that every Division I program must schedule a couple of certain W’s in its non-conference schedule. Still, poor, pathetic Murray has about as much chance of beating U of L as Ernie Fletcher has of getting the Courier-Journal’s endorsement for Governor. This isn’t a knock against the Racers. It’s just a fact, that’s all.

Oh, the final score won’t challenge Georgia Tech’s 222-0 win over Cumberland as the most lop-sided college game of all time. But it wouldn’t be surprised to see Brian Brohm & Co. win by 50 or 60. The margin should be somewhat closer in the Kentucky-EKU game. Still, it’ll be considered a surprise if Andre Woodson doesn’t lead the Cats to a four- or five-touchdown win.

But, hey, they’re only exhibitions, right? Opportunities to work out the kinks, give the newcomers some snaps, get down the timing. The second round of exhibitions figure to be slightly more competitive, although Kent State at UK and Middle Tennessee at U of L don’t exactly get me all worked up into a pigskin frenzy, either.

At least both teams should be well-prepared for their regular-season opener. The two exhibitions will give U of L’s players the chance to get comfortable with new coach Steve Kragthorpe in game-like conditions, and they’ll give UK’s players the opportunity to build on the carryover excitement from last season’s Music City Bowl win over Clemson.

Of course, both Kragthorpe and UK Coach Brooks, who celebrated his 66th birthday on Aug. 20, will make sure their teams play “under wraps,” as the saying goes. Neither wants the other guy to see his “full blitz package” and esoteric stuff like that. That’s why both practice camps are locked up tighter than Fletcher’s lips when he gets in front of a grand jury.

Personally, I’ll be glad when the Sept. 15 season opener finally gets here because it’ll mean the media will be forced to stop running puff pieces on both squads. Every year it’s the same thing. The newspaper, radio, and TV guys suddenly become adjuncts of the sports-information offices, run countless stories about how much bigger, better, quicker, leaner, meaner, etc., that just about every player is going to be. By the time the season opener rolls around, the public couldn’t be blamed for believing that both teams are well-stocked with future NFL draft picks.

Some year I’d love to take all those preseason headlines and trot them back out after the final game. In many cases, I’m confident the reporters would be embarrassed about spreading more manure than a whole convention of Future Farmers. You would think that part of their job description is to help the programs sell tickets.

Nobody asked me, but here are some things I think could happen this season:

1. By season’s end, NFL scouts will rate Woodson as Brohm’s equal as a prospect.

2. UK could have a better team but worse record than last season.

3. U of L will lose two or three games, and their newly-spoiled fans will view the season as a disappointment.

The last is particularly interesting. I still don’t believe U of L’s hardcore football support is nearly as solid as UK’s, which is why I wish Tom Jurich would hold up on his grandiose plays to expand Papa John’s. The Cards don’t fill the current stadium to capacity every game. Shouldn’t U of L wait until they do that before adding 20,000 or so seats?

I’m not sure that many U of L fans understand just how good last season was. The Cards lost only one game that could have easily been won, and they won a major New Year’s Day bowl game for the second time ever. That doesn’t happen every year, unless you’re Southern Cal under Pete Carroll. Personally, I think it would be a miracle if the Cards can match last season’s record.

Kragthorpe needs to be as blessed as his successor, Bobby Petrino, already has been with the Atlanta Falcons. Yes, that’s right. I said “blessed.” I don’t think Petrino ever was going to get along with Michael Vick, who was known as a “coach killer” even before he became known as a “dog killer.” Now, with Vick off to prison, Petrino can play develop Joey Harrington into a quarterback who will be more effective in his system than Vick ever would have been, mainly because Vick never met a system he couldn’t demolish with his individualism.

Anyhow, I’m sure glad the college exhibition season is upon us. I hope poor Murray and Eastern escape with their sense of self-esteem intact. At least the Colonels will have a much shorter ride home than the Racers. Thank heavens for small favors.

And next year, thankfully, there won’t be any exhibitions before the regular-season opener. The UK-U of L game should return to the season opener, which is where God — Howard Schnellenberger, at least — always intended it should be.