Louisville, Ky. ? Louisville’s “family within the family” is keeping the nation’s top offense rolling.

While quarterback Stefan LeFors and the Cardinals’ talented running backs put up the numbers and get all the publicity, Louisville’s offensive line quietly goes about its business.

“They’ve been great,” said LeFors, who’s completed 75 percent of his passes. “They communicate really well together, they play hard, and they’re extremely tough. They know how to get it done.”

The tight-knit offensive front has helped the No. 12 Cardinals (6-1, 4-0 Conference USA) gain 520 yards per game heading into tonight’s matchup with TCU (4-4, 2-3).

Two years ago, the offensive line was the scapegoat in a 7-6 season. When Bobby Petrino became the coach, he hired Mike Summers, who had helped Ohio’s offensive line clear holes for one of the nation’s top rushing offenses.

Summers restored the unit’s confidence by stressing fundamentals more than schemes, and the Cardinals led Conference USA in rushing in 2003.

“He got our spirit back,” junior tackle Travis Leffew said. “He has little mottos like, ‘Everything matters,’ and ‘Little things count.’ He’ll yell at us once in a while, but he’s more of a teacher. He’ll tell you what you did wrong, not yell at you for what you did wrong.”

Three starters returned this year, along with three reserves who are now upperclassmen. By now, they’ve spent so much time together, they practically consider themselves brothers.

“We’re the family within the family,” Leffew said. “Everybody who sees us figures we work together because we have to. But we all meet on weekends and almost everything we do outside of football, we do together. If you see anyone one of us out, chances are you’re going to see five big guys walking with us.”

The unit didn’t lose a step earlier in the season when sophomore tackle Renardo Foster went down with a knee injury. Junior Jeremy Darveau replaced him and didn’t allow a sack in his first game, a 41-38 loss at Miami.