The third quarter turned into a showcase for both offenses, with Louisville and SMU trading scores and leaning harder on the ground game. Once the defenses started loosening their grip, the big plays came fast, and there was plenty to sort through on film.
One of the clearest examples came on Keyjuan Brown’s run. Louisville’s line did just enough, and Brown handled the rest.
The blocks weren’t perfect, but they were enough for a back with his burst, patience, and vision to make the play sing. His cut back to the left was the difference, and once he hit the open field, he finished the run by treating the safety like a kid playing with his dad in the backyard on his way to the touchdown.
As the game wore on, Louisville made life tougher on SMU’s inside runs. The defensive tackles stopped drifting and started standing up blockers, which clogged the middle and gave the linebackers a cleaner path to the ball. The Cards also began crowding the box more often, even if that meant leaving themselves more exposed to a shot downfield.
That gamble paid off in stretches because it forced SMU to work harder to stay on schedule. On one run, though, the defense wasn’t aggressive enough downhill.
The linebackers sat back and tried to read the play, which let the center climb out of a double team and wipe out the playside linebacker. The backside linebacker missed the action completely, and by the time he reacted, the run was long gone.
That was the common thread on SMU’s biggest gains: Louisville wasn’t attacking the run with enough urgency.
There was also a broken-play feel to one Lincoln Kienholz scramble, with the offense and quarterback seemingly not on the same page. The line appeared to be set for a run while Kienholz looked to pass, and the receivers at the top of the screen seemed to be working different ideas as well. It still turned into a successful play, but it’s something worth watching as the season goes on.
Kienholz also had moments where the passing game looked sharp because he had time to settle in. Jeff Brohm has been saying he needs to improve from the pocket, and this was the kind of throw that shows why.
The timing was right on the money, letting the receiver clear out and giving Kienholz a clean window. He could have rushed it, and that’s the sort of throw he has missed at times this season.
The best-designed pass of the group might have been the mesh concept called on first down. That’s usually a third-down staple, but here it worked as a pick-style play that freed Lawayne McCoy.
Jaleel Skinner served as the pick right away, while Tre Richardson’s route developed farther downfield. The result was confusion in coverage and a near touchdown for McCoy.
Kienholz also delivered a strong throw on the move, one that took a few replays to appreciate fully because of how tight the window was. He put real pace on the ball and made it look easy enough that the offense could keep moving without asking him to do everything. That balance mattered, because plays like that become even more valuable when the offense isn’t living and dying with the quarterback.
Defensively, Micah Carter kept flashing. SMU tried to handle him with a receiver, and that matchup went exactly the wrong way for them.
Carter used his length to keep the blocker off him, then powered through with strength and effort to drive the receiver back into the ball carrier. It was a reminder that size alone doesn’t tell the full story with defensive linemen.
Blake Ruffin did his part too by setting the edge on the play, and it echoed a similar stop from the second quarter when those two teamed up to blow up an outside run. Brycen Scott also chipped in with a couple tackles like that. All three were expected to be depth pieces, but their roles are clearly growing.
The offensive line also looked noticeably better with Anwar O’Neal in the lineup. Lance Robinson’s work at center stood out again, especially since he confirmed to the guys over at The State of Louisville this summer that center is where he prefers to play.
He was quick off the snap and helped drive double teams effectively. On one run, he and Eryx Daughtery got outside the defensive end and built a wall that took out the backside linebacker too.
O’Neal then sealed the playside linebacker out of the action, with Justyn Reid coming in to help finish the job. Isaac Brown turned that into a strong 9-yard gain, exactly the kind of run Louisville needs more of.
The explosive runs from Keyjuan Brown were important, but the offense has to live in those 5- to 10-yard chunks and cut down the negative plays and the 1- to 3-yard stuff from the first two games. There’s still a lot of upside here, and it starts with running the ball like this more consistently.
In Other News...
Louisville May Catch Wake Forest Without Its Biggest Offensive Threat
Louisville is getting ready for a Wake Forest offense that may look a lot different than usual, and the uncertainty starts at quarterback. Gio Lopez has been one of the key reasons the Demon Deacons have been able to push the ball through the air, ranking near the top of the ACC in passing yards and touchdowns.
Lopez has been playing with the hip issue for a while now, which makes his status even harder to read heading into the matchup. For Louisville, that leaves one of the more important questions in the game still hanging in the balance, because Wake Forests attack is not nearly the same if its most reliable offensive threat cannot go. [Read more 🡒]
Louisvilles Second Quarter Exposed One Problem And One Intriguing Wrinkle
Louisvilles second quarter against SMU offered a sharp look at how thin the margin can be on defense, especially when the Cardinals are asked to sort out assignments on the fly. One series ended badly after a breakdown in the secondary, while another showed how quickly the same defense can flip the field when the call and the execution match up. In between, the game also gave a glimpse of how Jeff Brohm and his staff are trying to create edges with the offense, including a designed run look for Lincoln Kienholz that fit the broader chess match of the half.
The bigger takeaway for Louisville is that the tape contained both a warning and a small reward. The warning was simple enough: one lapse in coverage can undo everything else a defense does correctly. The reward was more subtle, and maybe more important for the long haul, because the Cardinals also showed they can still manufacture confusion and force mistakes when the disguise is right. [Read more 🡒]
Louisville Has A Chance To Shake Up The Rivalry On Saturday
Louisvilles weekend matchup with Wake Forest carries a little extra recruiting weight, too, with the Cardinals set to host four-star safety Tristin Hughes on campus. The Ohio prospect has already drawn more than 25 offers and is regarded as one of the top recruits in the country as well as in his home state, making him the kind of prospect who can change the look of a class quickly if a program can make the right impression.
The visit matters even more because Louisville is pushing hard to build out its 2027 class and views Hughes as a major target. Adding a player with that profile would be a significant win for the Cardinals, especially with rivalry undertones always in the background when Kentucky is involved. Now the question is whether a strong weekend in Louisville can keep the momentum moving in the Cardinals direction. [Read more 🡒]