Preview: Louisville Cardinals vs. Kentucky Wildcats

Kentucky Wildcats (6-5, 3-5 SEC) at No. 9/10 Louisville Cardinals (10-1, 7-1 ACC)

- Kickoff: Saturday, November 25 at 12:00 p.m. EST
- Location: L&N Stadium in Louisville, Ky.
- Weather Conditions: Partly cloudy. High 48F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph.
- How To Watch: ABC
- How To Listen: 93.9 FM
- Betting Favorite: Louisville -7.0
- All-Time Series: Kentucky leads 19-15
- Last Meeting: Kentucky won 26-13 on Nov. 26, 2022 (Kroger Field - Lexington, Ky.)

Game Notes

Louisville

The University of Louisville will looks for its 11th win for the first time since the 2012 season when they host intra-state rival Kentucky on Saturday at L&N Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 12 p.m. on ABC.
Louisville picked up its 10th win for only the seventh time in school history and the first time since 2013 with a 38-31 win over Miami to clinch a spot in the Atlantic Coast Conference title game on Dec. 2 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C. It’s the first appearance ever for the Cards in any conference championship.
Louisville equaled its best ever ACC record at 7-1 with the first win over the Hurricanes in Miami.
Quarterback Jack Plummer completed 24-of-37 passes for 308 yards and three scores in the win over Miami — the third time this season of tossing three or more touchdowns passes in a game and the 12th time in his career.
Plummer threw the game winner with 4:17 left in the fourth quarter when he connected with Kevin Coleman on a 58-yard pass to put the Cards up 38-31.
Despite giving up a season high 486 yards of total offense, the Cardinals kept the Hurricanes out of the end zone on four tries inside the Louisville five-yard line. Quincy Riley broke up a pass in the end zone on fourth down.
Trailing 28-23 in the third quarter, the Cardinals secured their fourth come-from-behind win by outscoring the Hurricanes 15-3 in the final quarter. The four comeback wins are the most since the 2012 season.
Louisville received touchdowns from three unexpected players as Nate Kurisky, Trevonte Sylvester and Evan Conley each scored touchdowns. Sylvester and Conley scored for the first time this season, while Kurisky reached paydirt for the second time in his career.
Kurisky had a big game, catching five passes for 50 yards and that touchdown. Joey Gatewood also caught a career best three passes for 51 yards.
Defensive end Mason Reiger recorded the only sack of the game to raise his season total to 5.0, which ranks 2nd on the team.
Facing one of the nation’s top pass rushing defense, the UofL offensive line didn’t allow a sack against the Hurricanes, who entered the game averaging 3.0 per contest.
Safety Devin Neal led the Cardinals in tackles for the second time this year with eight stops.
The Cards averaged 6.6 yards per play and recorded six plays of over 20 yards in the win over Miami. Louisville registered 470 yards of total offense, the most yards since totaling 582 in a win over Boston College on Sept. 23.
Running back Isaac Guerendo scored for the fifth time in the last three games when he reached the end zone from 12 yards out in the first quarter. He’s rushed for 333 yards and five scores, while averaging 10.4 yards per carry.
The Cardinals got much-needed production from the tight end position as that unit combined to catch nine passes for 112 yards and one touchdown.
Louisville is 6-0 at home this season and is looking to go 7-0 for the first time in school history. The Cards are also going for its 12th-straight home win, which would be the second longest streak in school history.
Quarterback Jack Plummer tossed three touchdown passes for the third time this season to up his season total to 19.
By clinching a spot in the ACC title game, head coach Jeff Brohm becomes the first coach to guide two different team to conference title games in back-to-back seasons. He guided Purdue to its first Big Ten West title a year ago.
Louisville completed passes to 12 different receivers for the second time this season, matching the total from the Murray State game.
By forcing a punt on the game’s first possession, Louisville extends its streak of holding opponents scoreless on their first possession to 15 games.
Running back Jawhar Jordan became the first Louisville running back to rush for 1,000 yards in a season since Javian Hawkins in 2019. He rushed for 33 yards on nine carries to push his season total to 1,009 yards.
Placekicker Nick Lopez made the first field goal of his Louisville career when he blasted a 40-yard field goal in the third quarter.
The Cardinals are averaging 38.8 points per game after scoring 30 or more points five times this season.
With two more rushing touchdowns, the Cardinals have 25 on the year and have at least one rushing score in 10 of 11 games.

Kentucky

Quarterback Devin Leary, who surpassed the 9,000-yard mark in career passing yardage at South Carolina, is ranked third in the SEC and 32nd in the nation in passing touchdowns with 20. For his career, Leary ranks 13th nationally with 82 total passing touchdowns.
Running back and All-America candidate Ray Davis has 990 yards on 172 carries (5.8 yards per carry) and 12 rushing touchdowns. He also has 266 yards on 25 catches and five receiving TDs.
Davis is ranked first in the SEC and third in the nation with 17 total touchdowns in 2023. Davis is 10 rushing yards away from 1,000 yards rushing in 2023. Should he reach that mark, he would be the 11th Wildcat in program history with 1,000 yards rushing in a season. It would be his second consecutive season over the millennium mark (1,042 last season at Vanderbilt) while he also would have netted 1,000 career rushing yards at three different Division I schools, also at Temple.
Two Kentucky receivers hit milestone at South Carolina and a third wideout is on the verge Sophomores Barion Brown and Dane Key each surpassed the 1,000-yard mark in receiving yards at South Carolina, becoming the 33rd and 34th players in UK history to do so. Tayvion Robinson, who has played the 2022 and ‘23 seasons at UK, has 998 receiving yards, needing just two more to reach 1,000 as a Wildcat.
The Wildcats have held eight of their last 12 opponents to under 100 yards rushing.
Kentucky is ranked fourth in the SEC and 40th in the nation in total defense, 347.8 yards per game. The Wildcats are second in the SEC and 20th nationally in run defense, allowing 109.6 yards per game.
Kentucky has four defensive touchdowns this season, tied for fourth in the nation.
Defensive back Maxwell Hairston, an All-America candidate, has five interceptions, which leads the SEC and is tied for second in the nation.
Dane Key and Barion Brown eclipsed 1,000 yards receiving in their two seasons at Kentucky at South Carolina on Nov. 18, while Tayvion Robinson is just two yards from 1,000 in his two seasons in the Bluegrass.
Kentucky outscored Vanderbilt, Florida, Missouri and Mississippi State, 58-0, in the first quarter, this season, allowing UK to play from ahead in those games, instead of the unenviable task of trying to mount a comeback in the rugged league.
Kentucky is currently ranked second in the Southeastern Conference and 22nd in the nation in rushing defense, allowing opponents to just 109.6 yards per game in 2023. The Wildcats held each of their first five opponents of the season to under 100 yards rushing for the first time in program history, based on game-by-game stats available since the 1940s.
UK has forced 14 turnovers in the first 11 games, the most in its first 11 games since 2020 (16). UK forced at least one turnover in each of the first seven games for the first time since 2014.
Kentucky has four defensive touchdowns this season, tied with seven others for the second most in the nation.
Playing at every position in the defensive line at various times, Deone Walker, a sophomore defensive lineman, is an impact player for the Wildcats. Often battling double-team blocks, while playing with a quickness that belies his 6-6, 348-pound frame, he is the team leader in tackles for loss with 10.5 (-42 yards) and is tied for the team lead in quarterback sacks with 5.5 (-32 yards). He also leads the team in quarterback hurries with seven.

Depth Charts

Here are the depth charts for both teams ahead of their matchup: Louisville vs. Kentucky

Comparison

See how the Cardinals stack up against the Wildcats, and who the statistical models favor: Tale of the Tape, Predictions: Louisville vs. Kentucky

Uniform Report

Louisville will be wearing red helmets (featuring the Heisman Cardinal), jerseys and pants, while Kentucky has yet to announce their uniform combination.

Rocking all red 🔴#GoCards x #ForTheVille pic.twitter.com/a1ZKuSYUcV
— Louisville Football (@LouisvilleFB) November 22, 2023

Additional Coverage

(Photo of Maurice Turner: Jordan Prather - USA TODAY Sports)

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