Louisville football looks to bounce back in a major way at Central Florida on Friday night but meets a team out for revenge in front of a sold-out crowd. Everything you need to know as the Cards take on the Knights.
First Down: What to Know for Louisville football vs. UCF
Who: Louisville at Central Florida
When: Friday, September 9th, 2022 at 7:30 PM ET
Where: FBC Mortgage Stadium | Orlando, Florida
Bonus Info: This is Louisville’s first trip to the “Bounce House”, where UCF has dropped 2 games in the last 7 years.
You can find more info on why it’s called that here. But, in short, basically, UCF has a massive student population, and they play ‘Kerncraft 400’ and the students get buck to electronic music. (Not ideal for a team that just had issues with snap counts at *checks notes* Syracuse??)
TV: ESPN
Radio: 93.9 FM and 970 AM in Louisville (Paul Rogers/Jody Demling/Preston Brown)
Series: Louisville football leads 2-1
Last Meeting: Louisville won 42-35 in 2021
Spread Check: UCF -6.5 (Opened at -5.5)
O/U: 61.5
Thread Check:
Louisville’s best-looking uniforms IMO.
Relevant Videos:
One of the greatest Paul Rogers calls:
Confidence Level Check: Chinanu Onuaku shooting free throws (before he switched to underhand approach)
Second Down: Storylines
Can UofL bounce back?
For the sanity of Scott Satterfield and Louisville football fans, the answer has to be yes. Following a disappointing and surprising loss to Syracuse in the season opener, the Cards find themselves in a very sticky situation. Lose to UCF and start 0-2, then you’re watching all momentum and support built over the offseason evaporate. Win and get things back to where they were expected to be a week ago and right on track.
Guz Malzahn and company will be looking for revenge following the walk-off pick six loss and subsequent (and unintentional) season ending injury to star QB Dillon Gabriel. While Gabriel is quarterbacking the Sooners in Oklahoma, former Ole Miss QB/WR John Rhys Plumlee will lead the charge for the Knights. Plumlee is the fastest QB Louisville football has faced under Satterfield’s leadership according to the man himself, and considering the offensive wizardry of Malzahn & OC Chip Lindsay, plus the dynamic skill players of Ryan O’Keefe, Isaiah Bowser, Javon Baker, and Johnny Richardson, things could get dicey on Friday.
No one expects guys like Caleb Chandler, Yasir Abdullah, KeiTrel Clark, or Malik Cunningham to play as bad as they did last week and that should give Cards fans hope. Those guys are All-ACC players for a reason and while their play was frustrating it is by no means an indication of the type of year they’ll have. Satterfield needs his veterans to step up to help put the worries of last week away and get back to playing fast, physical football.
This game may be the most important road game of Satterfield’s entire football career. It may sound like hyperbole or extra fanfare but I truly believe that when you consider how good the Knights are at home.
Lose to UCF and Satterfield w ill fall to 2-6 over the last eight games, including losing the last three (not including UCF) by a margin of 56-114. He needs this to keep the hot seat talk at bay. If the Cards do lose, expect much more talk about staff changes.
How will John Rhys Plumlee handle his first major test?
It’s easy to forget that John Rhys Plumlee was a four-star QB and top 350 player coming out of high school. While his career at Ole Miss was topsy turvy, including seeing him move to WR in 2021, he did show promise throwing for 1200+ yards, gaining 1,400+ yards from scrimmage and scoring 17 total TD’s. His transfer to UCF has given him a new opportunity to show his potential and that’s exactly what he did last week against FCS opponent South Carolina State.
Plumlee totaled over 400 yards of offense (passing & rushing) and accounted for five total scores in a blowout victory. Coach Malzahn told local media of his QB, “He’s really football savvy. He’s a smart guy. Each game I think you’ll see him improve.”
His first real test will come against a Louisville defense looking to bounce back from a poor outing week 1. Plumlee’s speed should allow for big gains on the ground, much like Garrett Shraeder of Syracuse. While his gun-slinging arm & bevy of weapons should allow for big plays. Leaning on the thunder & lightning-like duo of running backs Isaiah Bowser & Johnny Richardson will also help open up things through the air.
Plumlee’s number one responsibility will be reading what the defense takes and not forcing big plays. If he can do that while keeping the breakneck speed that Malzahn likes from his offense, he shouldn’t have a ton of issue building upon the work of Shraeder. If he does try to do too much, look for veterans like Abdullah, Clark, and Kenderick Duncan to take advantage. Forcing turnovers will be crucial for the Louisville defense.
Will this game be similar to 2021?
The 2021 rendition of Louisville football vs. Central Florida was an all-time classic thanks to a mistake turned opportunity for true freshman linebacker Jaylin Alderman. As Presley Meyer pointed out this week, the two teams have eerily similar trajectories through the ranks of college football and almost anytime they get together, the game is a good one. None better than last year.
Both teams returned the majority of its starters from a year ago, which means there should be a lot of familiarity. The two squads combined to score 77 points and total over 915 yards of offense in four quarters. For the defense, bend but don’t break was the name of the game, as both came up with huge turnovers in the waning moments of crunch time.
Until Louisville’s offense can show the ability to not only sustain a drive but punch it into the endzone, it’s hard to imagine them being able to keep the scoring pace with UCF. However, last year in a nearly similar situation, Louisville bounced back two weeks after a blowout loss to Ole Miss and picked up a major victory – arguably their most important of the year in 2021.
Will they bounce back again? Or will the hole Syracuse exposed in the Louisville football program show again against another team capable of homerun plays on every single snap?
Media timeout:
Catch the latest episode of From The Pink Seats Podcast recapping the Syracuse loss and the upcoming matchup with UCF.
3rd Down: Key matchups
Kei’Trel Clark, Jarvis Brownlee/Quincy Riley vs. Ryan O’ Keefe & Javon Baker
Syracuse’s offense had no issues with Louisville’s defense, but it was mostly the RB & QB who made big plays. This weekend, Louisville football will face a strong slew of receivers, headlined by Ryan O’Keefe & Alabama transfer Javon Baker.
Against SC State, the dynamic duo combined to catch eight of the 20 completed passes from JRP for 132 yards and a touchdown. That included the 52 yard bomb which was the games highlight play. Both players show the ability to play inside and outside, which means that Clark, Brownlee, and Riley will all likely see time defending the pass catchers. If they aren’t able to get hands on them at the line of scrimmage and throw the receivers off their routes, it will likely be another long evening.
Whether it’s zone coverage or man-to-man, DC Bryan Brown has to show a better understanding of how to utilize his corners. As Vincent Lococo (and others on social media) pointed out on FTPS, the corners were caught on numerous occasions playing 12-15 yards off the ball and had several misreads when it came to flipping and running.
This led to several of the big plays we saw from receivers Devaughn Cooper, Orande Gadsden, and Courtney Jackson. With experienced, ball-hawking corners, it would be great to see much more press coverage as well as hand physicality against Baker and O’Keefe as well as dynamic weapons in Kemore Gamble (TE) and Jaylon Griffin.
Isaiah Bowser, Johnny Richardson & JRP vs. Louisville’s front seven
There will be no better indicator of likelihood of a victory for Louisville football than seeing improved rush and tackling on defense. The front seven of the Cards was praised all off-season, especially after adding graduate transfers MoMo Sanogo and Jermayne Lole, with expectations that they’d be much more impactful in 2022. Game one wasn’t a great sign for that being the case but against UCF they’ll have the chance to show their true potential.
Central Florida will undoubtedly follow the game plan laid out by Syracuse and hand the ball off to star RB’s Isaiah bowser and Johnny Richardson. In 2021, Bowser got off to a big start before being injured which allowed for Richardson to take over. Both are healthy and will look to have a big day against Louisville. Mix in the dangerous speed of Plumlee and you’re talking about a three-headed monster that could absolutely dominate Louisville.
There will be two keys for Louisville football when it comes to slowing down UCF: 1) Get pressure on Plumlee and force him into bad runs and bad throws 2) No missed tackles
Getting the two backs and Plumlee down on the first attempt will be of the utmost importance. Arm tackles and whiffs down low will allow Central Florida to convert on crucial downs and pick up big yards much like we saw with Sean Tucker and Garrett Shraeder.
Louisville’s O-Line vs. Central Florida front three
For the second week in a row Louisville will face a defense running a 3-3-5 scheme. UCF will have three guys with their hands in the dirt, led by Louisville native Ricky Barber and Anthony Montalvo. While neither are star players, they are consistent and capable of getting pressure thanks to a ton of athleticism. Add in Tre’mon Moriss-Brash who finished 2021 with 22 tackles and 4 sacks, and you have a group who can get after Cunningham.
Louisville’s offensive line was not good in week 1, which was honestly not expected. They’ll look to establish dominance and set the tone with physiciality but the question is if they can do it for all four quarters. Not having Renato Brown for the first half will hurt (he’ll miss due to the targeting call) but expect Michael Gonzalez to fill in admirably. Depending on how things go we could see the first lineup change on Saturday.
4th Down: Players to watch
Central Florida
Jeremiah Jean-Baptiste
Jean-Baptiste had a hell of a game in 2021 making plays all over the place. With Tatum Bethune playing for FSU and Big Kat Bryant gone to the NFL, Jean-Baptiste is the heart and soul of the defense. Look for him to be flying around all over the field. He’ll spy Malik Cunningham, blitz, make a play in the backfield on a run, and even drop into coverage. He has the potential to make huge plays with his aggressive and relentless style of play.
Divaad Wilson
The senior defensive back was one of Central Florida’s top tacklers last season and is more than capable of grabbing an INT (he grabbed his first of the year last Thursday). He’ll float around as a safety and attempt to replicate what Syracuse did against Malik Cunningham. The entire secondary is fast but Wilson is a veteran who’s seen Malik before and will 100% be looking to grab his second INT and match his total from a year ago.
Kobe Hudson
I mentioned Javon Baker and Ryan O’Keefe earlier but failed to mention anothe dynamic weapon, Kobe Hudson. Hudson is another SEC transfer (from Auburn) who led the Tigers in receicing in 2022. While he failed to record a stat against SC State, he’ll 100% be a weapon for Plumlee against Louisville.
Syracuse was able to spread the ball around against Louisville’s defense with seven different players catching a pass and four players finishing with 35 yards or more. Hudson told UCF’s Rivals affiliate, “”I’m an all-around receiver,” Hudson said. “Whatever Coach Gus, Coach Heard or Coach Chip ask me to do, I’ll get it done. You throw the ball up, I’ll go get it. You throw a five-yard hitch, I’ll take it 60. Whatever you need me to do. I can block. I block for the running backs. I’ll play special teams. Whatever it takes for the team.”
Expect Plumlee to make an intentional effort to target Hudson early.
Louisville
Tiyon Evans
Louisville football ran for 191 yards against UCF last year. Evans was one of the few bright spots against Syracuse and I think he’ll look even better in week two. Satt won’t be shy getting him involved to establish the run very early. Louisville has to set the tone with their physicality up front.
Yasir Abdullah
South Carolina State recorded two sacks against UCF last week. Not a huge deal but I think that sets up nicely for Abdullah to follow behind with a big game. Everyone has talked about the o-line being a weakness for Central Florida and with that being the case I’ll be keeping a close eye on Abdullah from the edge. He needs a nice bounce back game to steady his draft stock.
Ahmari Huggins-Bruce
Malik Cunningham almost exclusively targeted new wide receiver Tyler Hudson against Syracuse. When he did look elsewhere, he had success finding sophomore Ahmari Huggins-Bruce. The speedy wide out had a 45 yard catch and a 12 yard catch against Syracuse and honestly could’ve had much more. Satt needs diversification in the offense and getting the ball to AHB in addition to Hudson, Ford, and Evans will go along way.
4th Down: Predictions
Jacob Lane, Owner/ Host From The Pink seats
Much like you reading this, I also have questions about Satterfield’s ability to bounce back. Things are trending in the wrong direction really fast and with UCF running almost a mirror image of Syracuse’s offense & defense, just faster, I smell troubel for Louisville.
I do expect for Louisville football’s roster to take it upon themselves to play better. However after what I saw last week, I’m not sure the coaches will put them in the best place to succeed. I hope they prove me wrong.
I expect UCF to go fast, replicate what Syracuse did, and take advantage of what Louisville’s troubles have been over the Satterfield era. 0-2 is not where expected Louisville to be. Now the FSU becomes a must have.
Louisville 24, Central Florida 41
Presley Meyer, Owner/ Host Starting Five02
It would shock me if Louisville football didn’t at least come out swinging Friday night in Orlando.
Historically, Scott Satterfield teams may not win, but they have been respectable in the proverbial “back against the wall” situations. When our expectations are lowered, Satt-coached teams seem to outpace the standard of the previous game (see: BC, Clemson, Syracuse in 2021; Syracuse, Wake Forest in 2020).
UCF presents a ton of challenges for Louisville’s defense, and if the Cards want to stand a chance Friday night, I truly believe they will need to score in the 40’s.
The only way I see the Cards coming out victorious here is if they win the turnover battle by 2+ and/ or take advantage of uncharacteristic UCF mistakes. Given what we have seen in the last 3 years, neither scenario seems likely.
Malik Cunningham has been as bad as he’s ever been in UofL’s last three games (dating back to Air Force and UK last season). I think UCF’s defense presents an opportunity to bounce back and Cunningham regains a little mojo by making big plays with his legs early.
Still, we have seen no real change in the way of better play-calling on offense or better tackling on defense. Couple that with a sure-to-be-ridiculous Bounce House and that is too much to overcome- Even for a better team. I think the Cards seize the momentum and take an early lead, but it’s the same old story late as the Knights mount a comeback in a sloppy rain game.
Louisville 38, UCF 47
Ethan Sprowles, Former Ville’ns VP
Well, last week my score prediction was dead wrong, but the fears I laid out now seem eerie to look back on. It appears they’ve been realized.
Now, we’ve come out and gotten destroyed by a team we destroyed just a year ago and it seems like worst-case scenario is now on the table. Central Florida is pretty much better than Syracuse in every facet. It took a miracle to beat them last year and it looks like it may take a feeding the 5,000 level miracle to come out with a win this year.
Plumlee is dynamic, he put up over 500 yards of offense and 5 touchdowns himself last week. The Cards defense looks no better than it has in the last several years, combining that with the offense only putting up 7 points against the team picked last in the Atlantic, I have to listen to all logic pointing to a clear direction at this moment.
UCF is better and the environment is gonna be tougher. Cards get rolled in a crazy Friday night stomp show, stomping out our hopes for signs of change.
Louisville 21, UCF 48
Brian Trent, Host, Off the Walz
Louisville 24, UCF 45
Vincent Lococo, Former Louisville LB/ Host, From the Pink Seats
Louisville 21, UCF 35
Spencer Brown, ESPN 680/ 93.9 Producer
Louisville 35, UCF 38
Matt McGavic, Deputy Editor Louisville Report (SI) / Host, From The Pink Seats
Louisville 31, UCF 42
