Sep 62 min read

How the Louisville Cardinals Can Get Off to a 2-0 Start

Tyler Shough — © Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

The No. 22 Louisville Cardinals will take on the Jacksonville State Gamecocks at 3:30 p.m. EST on Sep. 7 in Louisville, Ky. Louisville is coming off a blowout 62-0 win against FCS opponent Austin Peay and Jacksonville State is trying to find their groove after a 55-27 loss against Coastal Carolina.

Week 1 Blowouts

This is the first time these two teams will face each other. The Gamecocks are entering their second season in the FBS. Jacksonville State finished third last season in Conference USA but after the blowout loss against Coastal Carolina, the Gamecocks need a bounce-back game. While a win may be unlikely for Jacksonville State on Saturday, a competitive showing against the Cardinals will bode well for their confidence moving forward.

Isaac Brown — © Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

Pound the Rock

Louisville has a simple key to win on Saturday: Pound the rock. Jacksonville State gave up 294 rushing yards last week against Coastal Carolina, so the running game should be key for a Cardinal win on Saturday. Louisville's running back group is a mix of youth and veteran talent with freshman Isaac Brown, freshman Duke Watson, freshman Keyjuan Brown and junior Maurice Turner, who accounted for 301 total rushing yards on just 24 carries and 3 rushing touchdowns last week.

On the defensive side, senior pass rusher Ashton Gillotte should be in for a big game. He totaled 4 tackles, 1.5 tackles for a loss and a sack last week against Austin Peay. Coastal Carolina amassed just 3 sacks against the Gamecocks, but Jacksonville State's offensive line should yield some opportunities for the Cardinals’ pass rush to get after senior quarterbacks Tyler Huff and Logan Smothers.

Quarterback Struggles

It’s yet to be determined which quarterback Jacksonville State coach Rich Rodriguez will start on Saturday. The quarterback situation must be figured out for the Gamecocks to have a successful season. In the immediate future, the Gamecocks need either Huff or Smothers to play a competitive game on Saturday. Both quarterbacks combined for 14 of 26 completions, 234 yards, 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions last week. Smothers started the game but was eventually pulled early in the third quarter for Huff.

Defensively, the Gamecocks' back nine will need to come up with turnovers to make this game closer than the spread indicates at 29 points in favor of Louisville. Last season, the Gamecock defense amassed 16 interceptions and 8 fumble recoveries. Jacksonville State's defense had two takeaways this past week, so the key for a competitive game is to create havoc against Cardinals’ senior quarterback Tyler Shough.