Louisville Drawing on Lessons Learned Ahead of Matchup at Pitt

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - While the Louisville football program hasn't exactly faced super stiff competition to begin their 2025 campaign, it's hard to argue with an undefeated record.

Sure, the Cardinals have certainly not looked their best at times over the first three games of the year. But at the end of the day, they were able to take care of business against Eastern Kentucky, James Madison and Bowling Green, and are currently sitting with a 3-0 record.

But now, Louisville is set to face their first big test of the year. Not only is it nothing but power conference teams from here on out, they're now having to leave L&N Stadium for the first time this season, traveling up the Ohio River for their ACC opener at Pitt.

“We’ve got our first road test coming up this week - a conference game, an important game, so we have to have a good week of practice," head coach Jeff Brohm said. "I think this is going to be a good test for us.

"[Pitt has a] physical defense. They play hard, they play aggressive, they play downhill, they take chances, they take risks and we’re going to have to be really good at finding ways to defeat it, and take care of the ball while we do that. Offensively, they spread it around. We've got to play good defense, which has been good through three games, and will be tested on the road this week. It will be a good experience for our guys. It's an important game."

Like Louisville, Pitt has certainly shown flashes of a high end team despite not playing a perfect brand of football. The Panthers had a blazing hot start to the season in terms of scoring margin, blowing out crosstown FCS foe Duquesne 61-9, then following that up with a 45-17 dismantling of Central Michigan. That being said, in their last time out, Pitt dropped a 31-24 overtime decision at West Virginia for the annual Backyard Brawl rivalry showdown.

Where Pitt really makes their hay, as they traditionally have under head coach Pat Narduzzi, is with stout defensive play. The Panthers have the No. 30 defense in the FBS at 283.7 yards allowed per game, and it's anchored by an incredibly aggressive and physical front seven. Their 4.00 sacks per game is the best in college football, their 10.0 tackles for loss per game is second only to Indiana, and their 81.0 rushing yards allowed per gamer is 16th in the nation.

It's certainly a daunting defense, as players such as Kyle Louis, Rasheem Biles and Javon McIntyre - when infused with Narduzzi's scheme - have the ability to run wild. Even when Pitt had not been at their best, playing in the Steel City has not been easy. Of course, everyone remembers the stunning 38-21 upset back in 2023, but the Cardinals have not won in Pittsburgh since 2012 - when both teams were in the Big East.

That being said, Louisville has had some recent success against this unit.

Just last year, Louisville came out on top with a 37-9 victory over Pitt. In that game, the Cardinals put up 212 rushing yards and 505 total yards of offense, which the most that that Panthers had given up all season. While Pitt did have two sacks and five TFLs in that game, UofL countered by not turning the ball over a single time.

With the rematch now on the horizon, not only have Brohm and the rest of the coaching staff broken down film of the current Pitt squad, they're also incorporating the film from last season's showdown - both on offense and defense - into their game plan in an attempt to try and replicate it.

"As we’ve gone back and looked at last year’s game, to be quite honest, we played as good as we could play," Brohm said. "It was a really well-executed game plan by our guys on both sides of the ball. We were able to defeat the blitz early on against Pittsburgh, which really helped us move the ball and get points. Once we got a lead, which is always important, we were in the driver’s position the rest of the way out as far as controlling the ball, making them throw the ball more than they wanted to, which really helped our defense. That’s going to be key once again.

"You’ve got to have a good plan to defeat all their pressures, and even when they play base defense, they’ve got a lot of guys down in the box, supporting the run and playing aggressive. They’ll pressure on the outside, they’re not going to give up any easy completions - you’re going to have to earn it. We just have to have a good plan and be able to execute it early, and that was the key to success last year. I’m sure they have watched the film as well, and we will have to have a few adjustments here and there to see if we can gain an edge, but they test you. That’s why they have been so great against the run and so good on defense, because they are aggressive and you have to have some different elements to try to take advantage of it."

Additionally, Louisville has learned a lot from their matchup against James Madison earlier this season. Not necessarily from a scheme perspective, but more so a mindset and ability to adjust standpoint.

It's no secret that when the Dukes came to town to face the Cardinals, they threw the kitchen sink at them. JMU opted for a pressure-heavy approach on defense, blitzing on nearly every play in an attempt to get Louisville out of sorts. It very nearly worked, with UofL having to score 22 unanswered to capture a 28-14 win.

Not only did James Madison blitz until the cows came home, Brohm and the offensive staff showed very little adjustment to it. As rough as that game was at times, it has served a purpose ahead of the showdown at Pitt. Not only do Louisville's players have some idea on how to deal with an aggressive and pressure-heavy defense, Brohm and Co. know how to scheme against it with this personnel.

"I think we learned a lot from James Madison," Brohm said. "They brought the house multiple times, and we did not make them pay. When they did that and it worked, they kept doing it and we were not able to respond and act accordingly. It affected the game, and affected the confidence and ability to continue to be aggressive, because we were getting pressure."

"I thought we had a better plan this past week (vs. Bowling Green). This past team didn’t do it; I thought that they would maybe take some things from the previous game, but they did not. ... This team has been working this package for a long time, and its effective over a lot of teams. When they play good on offense, it marries up well with what they do, and they were very effective last year. I think they started 7-0, then ran into a couple speed bumps and maybe had some injuries. They know how to the play the game, and it is definitely built around their defense and their attacking, aggressive style.”

Of course, while not nearly as prolific as their defensive counterparts, Pitt has shown some good things on offense as well.

QB Eli Holstein is off to a solid start, as his 171.3 QBR leads the conference. He's completed 65.9 percent of his passes for 822 yards and nine touchdowns, while throwing *just* three interceptions. Wide receiver Raphael Williams has been incredibly explosive logging 245 yards and three touchdowns on just 12 catches. Running back Desmond Reid is one of the best all-purpose backs in the country, although his availability is in question after getting banged up vs. WVU.

Regardless on what side of the ball they're on, the players know that Pitt is not a team they can sleepwalk against. They know that this matchup has the potential to be a real tone-setter, whether for good reasons or bad.

"It definitely sets the tone a lot," defensive tackle Rene Konga said. "Pitt is a very talented team, so being able to go down to Pittsburgh and do our best is definitely going to catapult us for the rest of the season. The coaches do a great job getting us prepared. I think if you do what we're supposed to do, we definitely have a chance to beat them."

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