Louisville’s offense finally found its rhythm last week, and now the Cardinals head to Syracuse looking to make sure the Orange don’t do the same.
The Cardinals snapped out of a rough stretch with a 44-20 win over Florida State, a game they controlled after falling behind 14-0 early. Louisville had dropped consecutive one-score decisions to Wake Forest and North Carolina State before that, but against the Seminoles the ground game took over in a big way.
Isaac Brown delivered the kind of day that turns heads, piling up a career-best 235 rushing yards and two touchdowns on only 17 carries. One of those scores went for 97 yards. Lincoln Kienholz added two rushing touchdowns of his own, and Louisville finished with 397 rushing yards and six touchdowns on the ground.
That performance came in the first game after Jeff Brohm handed playcalling duties to his younger brother, Brian, the Cardinals’ offensive coordinator.
"Brian's been ready for a long time," Jeff Brohm said. "He's been with me, he knows the offense, he knows football, he's extremely smart."
Syracuse, meanwhile, is trying to sort through quarterback uncertainty after a frustrating 28-25 loss to Virginia. The Orange were ahead by double digits late in the third quarter before letting the game slip away.
Now they’re dealing with injuries at the most important spot on the field. Starter Steve Angeli is nursing soreness in his surgically repaired Achilles tendon, backup Amari Odom has a shoulder injury, and even third-string quarterback Malachi Nelson left the Virginia game with a shoulder/collarbone injury. That forced Danny Lauter into action in the fourth quarter.
Fran Brown left open the possibility that any of the four quarterbacks could end up starting this weekend.
"There's a lot that's going to happen within these next 48 hours," Brown said. "You've got to go through these next 48 hours first and then we'll continue to move on and take it from there, getting them as many reps as possible."
However the quarterback picture shakes out, Syracuse will still look heavily on Umari Hatcher. He caught eight passes for 126 yards and a touchdown against Virginia, and he has 37 receptions for 560 yards and six scores on the season.
Jeff Brohm said his team will be prepared.
In Other News...
Louisville Fans Finally Get The Mikel Brown Jr. Moment They've Waited For
Mikel Brown Jr. spent his first pro summer giving Louisville fans a glimpse of the player they watched take over the Cardinals' offense, and now the spotlight is about to tighten. Selected sixth overall by the Brooklyn Nets in the 2026 NBA Draft, Brown has already begun turning heads in early NBA action, and his preseason debut is set to come against the Miami Heat.
That matchup adds a little extra juice for Louisville followers because Ryan Conwell, Brown's former backcourt running mate and another of the Cardinals' leading scorers from the 2025-26 season, is with Miami now. It is the kind of early-career crossover that can make a new chapter feel even more connected to the one that came before, and it gives Louisville fans a reason to keep one eye on the preseason schedule. [Read more 🡒]
Louisville's Syracuse Prep Starts With One Huge Quarterback Question
Louisvilles trip to Syracuse comes with the usual defensive homework, but the biggest item on the checklist is still the Oranges quarterback situation. Steve Angeli opened the season as the starter, but injuries and uneven play have pushed Syracuse into a carousel at the position, with Malachi Nelson, Amari Odom and Danny Lauter all getting snaps as the staff tries to keep the offense moving.
The uncertainty under center has made the rest of the roster even more important, especially a run game built around Tylik Hill and a receiving group topped by Umari Hatcher, who leads the ACC in touchdowns. For Louisville, the challenge is simple enough to say and harder to solve: prepare for a Syracuse offense that can lean on multiple looks, while still waiting to see which quarterback actually gets the first real shot to settle things down. [Read more 🡒]
Florida State Faces A Telling Rivalry Test At Miami
Florida State heads into a charged Atlantic Coast Conference matchup at Miami coming off a rough stretch, and the timing does not make things any easier. The Seminoles are trying to stop the slide while also dealing with the dismissal of freshman cornerback Chuck Kennon for conduct detrimental to the team, a move that adds another layer of turbulence to a roster already looking for answers.
Miami, meanwhile, comes in rested after a bye week and expects some key defensive players back in time for the rivalry test. Both teams lean on strong rushing attacks, which should make the line of scrimmage a focal point in a game that already carries plenty of weight for the ACC race and the pride that comes with a rivalry stage. [Read more 🡒]