Louisville is getting a timely lift as it heads into Saturday night’s road game at North Carolina.
The Cardinals, who have won four straight and are trying to keep their ACC Championship Game hopes alive, will have wide receiver Lawayne McCoy back in the lineup, according to Pete Nakos of On3 Sports. Louisville needs to win out to stay in the mix, and the trip to Chapel Hill is the next hurdle, with kickoff set for 7 p.m. local time.
McCoy’s return matters because he has been one of Louisville’s most productive targets all season. The Florida State transfer leads the team with four receiving touchdowns and ranks second with 513 receiving yards. He has topped 60 receiving yards in six of his seven games, including early-season outings of 62 receiving yards and a touchdown against Ole Miss, 102 receiving yards and a touchdown against Villanova, and 62 receiving yards and a touchdown against SMU.
He had been sidelined for nearly a month after playing through a knee injury against Syracuse. That stretch kept him out of three weeks, including games against Georgia Tech and Stanford. Louisville’s bye week came at a good time, especially after Brohm said McCoy would miss an “extended period of time.”
Entering the season, Louisville added multiple four-star receivers to its room, including Tre Richardson and McCoy. The Cardinals have leaned on that upgraded group, and McCoy has delivered as one of the top weapons in the offense.
His absence was felt, but the timing of his return is even better. Louisville is a 3.5-point favorite on the road against the Tar Heels, and ESPN Analytics gives the Cardinals a 60% chance to win. Now Brohm gets one of his biggest offensive pieces back for a game that carries real weight in the ACC race.
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Louisville Faces A Road Test That Could Reshape The ACC Race
Louisville heads into an ACC road game at North Carolina with the kind of late-season stakes that can still tilt the league picture, even if the Cardinals are already sitting at 6-3. The matchup has the feel of a tight one on paper, with Louisville favored by 3.5 points and bringing an offense that has been one of its biggest assets as it tries to keep momentum going in conference play.
North Carolina, meanwhile, enters at 5-4 with a defense that has been one of its strengths, which should make this a useful measuring stick for both sides. For Louisville, the key questions are familiar ones at this stage of the season: can the run game create balance, and can the pass rush get enough heat on the quarterback to make the Tar Heels uncomfortable in protection? [Read more 🡒]