The vibes are high in Miami, but will that translate to an ACC Championship appearance-clenching victory for Louisville football?
I was so excited for the Miami game that I may have overshot it by like… 5 days. Not to worry: Florida Pres has been keeping busy tanning, golfing, and sharing the good word of Louisville football.
As we move to a Saturday on the gridiron, it’s difficult to remember a more important regular season game for the Cards.
Louisville can get into the ACC Championship game a number of ways. But the simplest would be to just beat Miami. Win and you’re in.
Does Jeff Brohm have another gem up his sleeve?
Let’s dive in to what we know about Louisville football and Miami.
First Down: What to Know
Who: Louisville (9-1, 6-1) at Miami (6-4, 2-4)
When: Saturday, November 18th | Noon ET
Where: Hard Rock Stadium | Miami Gardens, FL
What’s at Stake: The first edition of the Schellenberger Trophy
Oh, and an appearance in the ACC Championship Game
Series: Miami leads 11-3
Last Matchup: Miami won 47-34 in 2020
Spread Check: Miami -1 (O/U 46.5)
Thread Check:
Vibe Check:
Life’s short. Drive fast and leave a sexy corpse. That’s one of my mottos.
Second Down: Depth Chart
Quarterback
13 Jack Plummer (6-5, 215, Sr.)
19 Brock Domann (6-2, 225, Sr.)
OR 15 Harrison Bailey (6-5, 230, Jr.)
OR 6 Evan Conley (6-2, 210, Sr.)
OR 10 Pierce Clarkson (6-1, 190, Fr.)
OR 12 Brady Allen (6-6, 220, R-Fr.)
Running Back
25 Jawhar Jordan (5-10, 185, R-Jr.)
4 Maurice Turner (5-10, 190, So.)
23 Isaac Guerendo (6-1, 225, Sr.)
Wide Receiver
1 Jamari Thrash (6-1, 180, R-Jr.)**
2 Jadon Thompson (6-2, 185, Jr.)
Wide Receiver
3 Kevin Coleman Jr. (5-11, 180, So.)
OR 9 Ahmari Huggins-Bruce (5-10, 170, Jr.)
Wide Receiver
7 Jimmy Calloway (6-0, 190, R-So.)
OR 0 Chris Bell (6-2, 225, So.)
Tight End
42 Josh Lifson (6-3, 235, Gr.)
OR 85 Nate Kurisky (6-3, 235, So.)
OR 84 Joey Gatewood (6-4, 245, R-Sr.)
OR 11 Jamari Johnson (6-5, 265, Fr.)
Left Tackle
55 Willie Tyler III (6-6, 320, R-Sr.)**
70 Trevonte Sylvester (6-6, 280, R-So.)
Left Guard
68 Michael Gonzalez (6-4, 305, Jr.)
67 John Paul Flores (6-4, 305, R-Sr.)
Center
61 Bryan Hudson (6-5, 305, R-Sr.)
51 Austin Collins (6-3, 290, R-So.)
Right Guard
51 Austin Collins (6-3, 290, R-So.)
71 Joshua Black (6-2, 280-R-Jr.)
Right Tackle
74 Eric Miller (6-7, 305, R-Sr.)
77 Vincent Lumia (6-2, 295, Sr.)
–
Defensive End
9 Ashton Gillotte (6-3, 270, Jr.)
15 Kameron Wilson (6-2, 230, R-So.)
32 Ryheem Craig (6-3, 235, R-So.)
Nose Tackle
99 Dezmond Tell (6-1, 290, Jr.)
OR 91 Tawfiq Thomas (6-4, 300, So.)
44 Selah Brown (6-2, 285, So.)
Defensive Tackle
41 Ramon Puryear (6-3, 270, R-Jr.)
58 Jeffery Clark (6-0, 290, R-Jr.)
OR 90 Jermayne Lole (6-3, 310, Gr.)
OR 93 Jared Dawson (6-2, 305, R-So.),
Leo (DE/LB)
14 Stephen Herron (6-3, 240, R-Sr.)
95 Mason Reiger (6-4, 250, Jr.)
15 Kameron Wilson (6-2, 230, R-So.)
12 Popeye Williams (6-3, 250, So.)
OR 98 Adonijah Green (6-6, 225, Fr.)
Middle Linebacker
24 Jaylin Alderman (6-1, 230, Jr.)
22 Keith Brown (6-2, 235, Jr.)
6 Stanquan Clark (6-3, 230, Fr.)
Weakside Linebacker
34 T.J. Quinn (6-1, 230, R-So.)
13 Gilbert Frierson (6-1, 220, R-Sr.)
17 Jackson Hamilton (6-1, 220, R-So.)
STAR (LB/S)
10 Benjamin Perry (6-3, 205, R-So.)
35 Antonio Watts (6-2, 225, So.)
Cornerback
2 Jarvis Brownlee Jr. (6-0, 190, Jr.)
29 Storm Duck (6-1, 200, R-Sr.)
Cornerback
3 Quincy Riley (6-0, 185, R-Jr.)
28 Trey Franklin (5-10, 185, R-Jr.)
30 Derrick Edwards III (5-11, 180, R-So.)
Free Safety
5 Josh Minkins (6-2, 200, Jr.)
11 Cam’Ron Kelly (6-2, 210, R-Sr.)
Free Safety
27 Devin Neal (6-0, 210, Jr.)
11 Cam’Ron Kelly (6-2, 210, R-Sr.)
Punter
40 Brock Travelstead (6-1, 205, Jr.)
OR 39 Carter Schwartz (6-4, 215, Fr.)
OR 93 Brady Hodges (6-1, 200, Jr.)
Placekicker
40 Brock Travelstead (6-1, 205, Jr.)
92 Nick Lopez (6-1, 190, R-Sr.)
Holder
93 Brady Hodges (6-1, 200, Jr.)
39 Carter Schwartz (6-4, 215, Fr.)
Long Snapper
48 Shai Kochav (6-3, 240, R-So.)
32 Hayden Travelstead (6-0, 200, Fr.)
Kick Returner
25 Jawhar Jordan (5-10, 185, R-Jr.)
23 Isaac Guerendo (6-1, 225, Sr.)
Punt Returner
3 Kevin Coleman Jr. (5-11, 180, So.)
3 Quincy Riley (6-0, 185, R-Jr.)
9 Ahmari Huggins-Bruce (5-11, 170, Jr.)
Third Down: What to watch for
Miami rush D vs Louisville rush offense
This may play the biggest factor in who wins this game.
Louisville football has been stellar on the ground- Even against quality rush defenses.
However, Miami may be its toughest test yet. Miami’s 86 yards per game allowed on the ground is good for 6th in the country.
Can Louisville’s banged-up offensive line and star running back withstand the Canes stellar front seven?
If they can, that could greatly impact the outcome.
Will Tyler Van Dyke be the only Canes QB we see?
Miami officially benched quarterback Tyler Van Dyke last week in favor of freshman Emory Williams.
While Williams was far from perfect at Florida State, he kept the Hurricanes in the game for a long time before suffering a season-ended injury.
That means TVD is back to his starting position, much to the chagrin of the Miami fan base.
Last season, Miami backup Jaccuri Brown saw significant snaps, leading the Canes to a win as the starter against Virginia.
However, Brown has yet to see a snap during the 2023 campaign.
If things start going south quickly for the Miami offense, I wouldn’t be surprised to see TVD pulled in favor of Brown. If that’s the case, the Cards need to be prepared for a duel-threat running quarterback.
Can the Cards play well away from home?
It’s been well-documented how elite this Louisville football team has been at home.
The Cards have won their home games by a combined score of 233-75. That’s an average score of 38-13.
Away from home, the Cards have been a different team. While they have won 3 of 4 games outside of L&N Stadium, they have actually lost 94-96. A rainy game against a first-time starter at Pitt is a massive outlier for the Cards. But even taking away that loss, the Cards won one-possession games against Georgia Tech (39-34), Indiana (21-14), and NC State (13-10).
Coming off a close call against Virginia, Louisville football should be giving this game its full attention.
But what we have seen from this team on the road so far has been far different than the one simply finding a way to win on the road.
Fourth Down: Predictions
Jacob Lane: 24-21 Cards
Presley Meyer: 28-25 Cards
Vince Lococo: 28-10 Cards
Matt McGavic: 24-20 Cards
