Louisville gets its first ACC test of the season on Saturday afternoon, and it comes with plenty of history attached. The Cardinals welcome No. 16 SMU to L&N Stadium for the second of three straight home games, and while the Mustangs already own an ACC win from their 27-24 victory over Florida State in the opener, this will be Louisville’s conference debut.
Jeff Brohm has handled ACC openers well since taking over, with Louisville going 3-0 and averaging 34.7 points per game in those games. Still, there’s one problem the Cardinals haven’t solved yet: SMU. Louisville has never beaten the Mustangs, with Brohm 0-2 and the program 0-4 overall in the matchup.
The betting line is tight, which fits the feel of the game. Louisville is a 1.5-point favorite at BetMGM, as of Wednesday, Sept. 16, with the Cardinals at -120 on the moneyline and SMU at +100. The over/under sits at 59.5.
The Courier Journal’s UofL writers and columnist are split on how this one plays out.
Alexis Cubit sees another shootout and another SMU win, picking the Mustangs 42, Louisville 38. Her read centers on Louisville’s offense being dangerous but the defense having trouble slowing down Kevin Jennings, who has already given the Cardinals fits. In two wins over UofL, Jennings has piled up 699 total yards and five touchdowns, with three passing and two rushing.
Brooks Holton is taking the home team, 35-28, and thinks the atmosphere at L&N Stadium gives Louisville the edge. He believes the Cardinals ride what he calls the best crowd of the season and make a statement on the way toward the ACC title game in Charlotte.
Payton Titus also has Louisville on top, 31-28, and expects the offense to do the heavy lifting. Titus called it Louisville’s first ranked win of the season and pointed to SMU’s narrow three-point win over Florida State in Week 1 as something that may not have fully revealed who the Mustangs are. Saturday, Titus wrote, should be a better measuring stick for who belongs near the top of the ACC behind Miami, “That is, as long as the power stays on.”
C.L. Brown is going with Louisville as well, 34-30, and sees the Cardinals finally finding a way to contain Jennings.
In Other News...
Louisvilles Second Quarter Exposed One Concern And One Encouraging Sign
Louisvilles second quarter against Villanova offered a pretty clean snapshot of where this team is still sorting things out early in the season. The defense had a coverage bust on a pick route that left the slot receiver free down the sideline, and the offense showed both its promise and its rough edges in the same stretch, with motion helping create better looks while the blocking still had some plays that needed cleaner execution.
There were encouraging signs inside the chaos, too. Lincoln Kienholz showed the kind of improvisation that can keep a drive alive when the initial picture breaks down, and DJ Wallers aggressive tackling stood out as the defense tried to settle in. Even so, the bigger question from that quarter is whether Louisville can tighten the little details fast enough, because the film had more than one example of a unit making things harder on itself. [Read more 🡒]
Louisville Faces An Early ACC Test That Could Change Everything
Louisville opens ACC play at home against SMU in a matchup that already feels bigger than a September conference game. The Mustangs arrive undefeated, with quarterback Kevin Jennings steering an offense that has looked dangerous early, while Louisvilles own attack has taken another step forward with Lincoln Kienholz giving Jeff Brohm a more dynamic look at quarterback.
There is also some recent history hanging over this one, which only adds to the stakes for a Cardinals team hoping to plant itself in the league race right away. SMU and Louisville have seen each other in competitive games before, and this one comes with the kind of early-conference pressure that can shape how both sides are viewed for the rest of the fall. [Read more 🡒]
Louisville Just Got An Encouraging Keyjuan Brown Sign Before SMU
Louisvilles buildup to its Week 3 ACC matchup with SMU got a timely boost this week, as the Cardinals moved into game prep with a little more optimism around their backfield. Keyjuan Brown, who was injured in Week 2, was not on Louisvilles first injury report for the game, a promising sign for a team that enters the matchup slightly favored and could use its top runner back in the fold.
Jeff Brohm had already sounded hopeful about Browns status, and the early reporting only strengthens the sense that Louisville is trending in the right direction ahead of Saturday. With SMU on deck and conference play beginning to matter, having Brown available would give the Cardinals a much steadier offensive setup as they try to keep their momentum going. [Read more 🡒]