Game Day: Louisville vs. Murray State

LOUISVILLE CARDINALS (1-0, 1-0) vs. MURRAY STATE RACERS (1-0, 0-0)

Game Time: 7:30 p.m.

Location: L&N Stadium: Louisville, Ky.

Television: ACC Network

Announcers: Chris Cotter (play-by-play), Mark Herzling (analyst) and Sherree Burruss (reporter)

Favorite: Louisville by 43.5

All-Time Series: Louisville leads, 14-6

Last Meeting: Louisville won 55-10 on Sept. 30, 2017 in Louisville

Series History:

Statistics:

Louisville Uniforms:

Relevant Videos:

Motivational Tweets:

Game Day Timeline:

Excitement Level: 7.4

Definitely pumped for the Brohm home opener and the Blackout and all that comes with that, but I’m not going to act like a game against an FCS opponent is more than what it is. Get the win, get some added confidence, stay healthy, and let’s get ready for Indiana.

Game Attire: Black Art Carmody No. 18 legend

The man, the myth, the legend surprised me on my birthday with the gift of the actual jersey he wore to kick four field goals against West Virginia in the original Blackout game in 2006. Only feels right to bust it out tonight.

Pregame Meal: Leftover El Mundo

I’ve got a couple of mole enchiladas to slam between the end of radio and kickoff.

Bold Prediction: Louisville scores a touchdown on its first three offensive possessions

Let’s see some early redzone improvement in week two.

T.J. Capers Playing Alert Level: Sunglow (very, very low)

We need to adjust this segment, but I’m still not sure where to go.

Predicted Star of the Game: Kevin Coleman

The explosiveness is on full display and the sophomore gets loose for a couple of scores, including one very lengthy house call.

About Murray State:

via Keith Wynne

OFFENSE

Dean Hood will bring his Racers team to Louisville with the hopes of keeping his season on track after a solid win last weekend. The Racers finished last season with two wins but Hood has only led two losing seasons in his entire career. The offense put up points last week and they showed an ability to spread the ball around with a balanced attack.

DJ Williams was lost for the season last year shortly into the first game of the year but he has returned this year and looks like a guy who is ready to win. Williams has good size at 6-3/211 and he can use his legs when needed, but for the most part, he likes to stand in the pocket and deliver the ball. Where he struggled last week was with his deep ball. He consistently overthrew or underthrew receivers and didn’t have great touch on the ball.

The running back group is a rotating committee but every back I watched last week showed an ability to get chunk yardage when they had the space. There isn’t one guy that looked like a gamebreaker but I was impressed with the overall speed of the group. They could definitely take advantage of a running lane if UofL doesn’t shore up the run defense issues we saw in the first half last week. Jawaun Northington is a guy to look out for. The former Manual star was the second back to enter the game last weekend.

The quarterbacks didn’t give the receivers much of an opportunity to show out but Taylor Shields finished the game with two touchdowns. Shields was the leading receiver last year and the veteran looked good as a deep threat. He is the one guy on this offense that I would expect to make a play or two. He won’t likely shy away from the moment. Golden Oke and Cole Rusk are two transfers to watch out for. They both have FBS experience and good size.

The offensive line gave the quarterbacks a lot of time last week against a lesser opponent. While they had some holding calls, I was impressed by how they created a pocket and worked together. The running backs had room to run as well but there were some issues on the backside of their stretch runs. While the space was there, things closed down when backs tried to cut back at times. I think the pass protection will be key for the Racers as UofL showed last week that they still have plenty of ability to put pressure on the quarterback.

DEFENSE

The Racers started the season with a dominant performance against Presbyterian last weekend, holding them to 10 points. Dean Hood’s defense had a rough 2022 season but a few transfers and an offense that should be able to help control the ball should lead to better results in 2023. While the competition wasn’t great in week one, the results are promising for the full season.

The defensive line is pretty light and the little bit of size they do have up front is pretty young. Detoye Adewole is the guy that stood out to me. He is a defensive end who transferred in this year. CJ Barnes is the veteran inside but at 280 pounds, he may have a hard time getting any push against the UofL offensive line.

The Racers run a similar defensive scheme as Louisville with three down linemen and a stand-up defensive end. The linebackers are the best group on the defense from what I saw and Nick Walker is the best player on the defense. Walker is undersized but he can run well and has his nose in the mix a lot against the run. Cody Goatley also made some nice plays last week. He is a player to watch after transferring in from UK a couple of years ago.

Presbyterian had a few nice plays in the passing game against a completely rebuilt defensive backfield for the Racers. Kanyon Walker transferred in from Tulane but outside of his performance, I wasn’t impressed with anyone in the secondary. This should be an opportunity for UofL to play some young guys to get them game reps and build confidence. I would be surprised if there are any struggles in the passing game.

Notable:

—Thursday night’s game has been dubbed a Blackout by U of L. The team will be wearing all black uniforms and fans are encouraged to wear black as well.

—Thursday night’s game marks the start of Louisville’s 25th season at L&N Stadium.

—Louisville is 113-45 all-time at L&N Stadium and is currently riding a five-game home winning streak.

—Louisville is 68-33-3 all-time in home openers.

—After a 2-9 season a year ago, Murray State opened its 2023 campaign with a 41-10 win over Presbyterian last week.

—Murray State was picked to finish 11th in the Missouri Valley in the league’s preseason poll. This is the Racers’ first season in the conference.

—Louisville has won six straight games over Murray State.

—Murray State’s last win over Louisville and its last win over an FBS opponent came when Frank Beamer led the Racers to a 26-23 win over the Cards in 1984 at Old Cardinal Stadium.

—Murray State Coach Dean Hood is 0-2 vs Louisville, with both games coming when he was head coach at Eastern Kentucky (2010 and 2013).

—Louisville is a 42.5-point favorite in this game according to DraftKings Sportsbook. The Cardinals have won seven of their last nine games when favored.

—Louisville has won four of its last five non-conference games.

—In 10 years as a head coach, Jeff Brohm is 21-13 in non-conference games.

—This will be Louisville’s first Thursday night home game since it hosted Charlotte to kickoff the 2016 season.

—Louisville is 12-12 all-time in Thursday night games. The Cards’ most recent Thursday night contest was a road blowout of Duke back in 2021.

—Louisville is 6-7 all-time in Blackout games, but has won two straight, including last season’s throttling of No. 10 Wake Forest.

—The Cardinals are looking to win three straight Blackout games for the first time in program history.

—Louisville has won 20 consecutive games against FCS opponents. Eastern Kentucky was the last FCS squad to defeat the Cardinals, beating U of L 45-21 back in 1985.

—Louisville is 95-51-3 all-time versus FCS schools.

—Louisville is 145-106-6 all-time during the month of September.

—Louisville has won 28 games in a row when holding teams to less than 300 yards of offense.

—Since 2019, Louisville is 21-4 when winning the turnover battle, and just 3-18 when losing it. The Cardinals won the turnover battle last Friday against Georgia Tech.

—Since 2018, Louisville is 8-0 when scoring 40-49 points, and 3-0 when scoring 50 or more.

—Louisville is currently riding a consecutive game scoring streak that spans 288 games dating back to a 31-0 loss to Florida State during the 2000 season. The streak ranks as the second longest in the ACC behind only Virginia Tech, and the 10th-longest nationally.

—Louisville is 198-14 all-time when scoring 35 or more points in a game. The Cards are also 6-121 all-time when allowing opponents to score 40 or more points.

Quotable:

—“It’s great to get back on the field right away and get back at it. I think our guys understand that there’s work to be done. I think we understand mistakes were made from myself all the way down included. We’re eager to try to fix those problems that we have. I think it’s a ‘show me’ world and we got to prove ourselves, It’s important that we go out this week and prove that we can execute and play sound football.” —Jeff Brohm

—“The one thing I’ve told my guys, when Murray State comes in here on Thursday night, every one of those players would rather be in your shoes, and playing on the big stage. All those guys wanted to be Division I players, and felt like they should have been, and they’re going to have a chip on her shoulder with something to prove.” —Mark Hagen

—“We’re expecting a good crowd. It’s the first home game, and we’re excited to get in our home stadium. I can’t predict how many, but I know if you play a good brand of football, and your team shows fight and grit and toughness, and you find ways to improve each and every week and compete at the highest level you can, people are going to come watch.” —Jeff Brohm

—“I expect it to be probably the largest crowd we’ve had since COVID. I’d love to have a crowd similar to the one against Notre Dame in 2019, and I don’t think that’s out of question. I really don’t. ... You only get to see Jeff Brohm’s first home football game that he’s coached as the head coach (at Louisville) one time, and that’s Thursday night.” —Josh Heird

—“The only two games I had even close to home (while at Stanford) were both three, four hours apart at Vanderbilt and Notre Dame. Those are the only two games I got to see anybody, and I had probably 50 people come out to both games. So, I’m excited to see that support from this town that’s supported me throughout high school and even my endeavors at Stanford. To be able to come back home and put on for the city is huge for me.” —Stephen Herron

—“To me, it’s all about us and how we go about things. I always preach that you’re only guaranteed 12 opportunities. We’re down to 11 now, so don’t waste one on Thursday night.” —Mark Hagen

Card Chronicle Prediction: Louisville 49, Murray State 9

Odds/lines subject to change. T&Cs apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for details.