The Wake Forest Demon Deacons (6-3-3, 1-3-1 ACC) return to Spry this evening to take on the Louisville Cardinals (5-5-2, 1-5 ACC). For the Deacs, this is their second straight game against a bottom 3 team in the conference, as they are coming off of a dramatic late 2-1 victory in Berkeley against the 13th placed Cal Golden Bears. That game was also the Deacs’ first conference victory of the season. The Cardinals, meanwhile, are in total freefall. After a 1-0 win against the #1 Stanford Cardinal,
the Cardinals have lost 5 straight conference games, and, since a 1-0 win in Columbus against Ohio State to move to 5-0, they have gone 7 games without a win. Most recently, they dropped a 2-0 decision in Blacksburg against Virginia Tech, who scored two second half goals to see off the Cardinals. For the Deacs, this is another game they can’t afford to lose against a team whose tournament hopes are likely gone. This fixture has often been a harsh clash of styles between two top teams, but with both teams in desperation mode, it will take on a slightly different tenor.
Opponent History
This Louisville program has had a journey to arrive to its current position. First established in 1979 under the leadership of Claudio Maldonado, the Cardinals’ first 28 years of existence were entirely unremarkable. Under the leadership of Maldonado from 1979-1992, Victor Petroni from 1993-1995, and Tony Colavecchia from 1996-2005, Louisville never made an NCAA tournament appearance, and only finished a season with more wins than losses 7 times across the tenures of all three coaches. In 2006, everything changed with the appointment of Ken Lolla. Lolla took over a Louisville team that, in its first two years in the Big East after moving from Conference USA, had mustered only 4 conference wins and 10 wins overall. After a similarly poor first season in charge, Lolla brought the program to new heights in just his second year, taking the Cardinals to their first NCAA tournament for in 2007. From there, Lolla built Louisville into a very competitive team, leading them to 11 NCAA tournament appearances, 4 conference regular season titles (3 Big East, 1 AAC), both the 2010 Big East Championship and national championship game, and the 2018 ACC championship. To put it plainly, Lolla took a losing program and made them into one of the top programs in the nation.
In 2018, Lolla made the decision to resign from his head coaching position at Louisville, and the Cardinals promoted from within, hiring John Michael Hayden to be their head coach. Hayden spent two stints on the bench in Louisville before taking the big seat, serving as an assistant under Lolla in 2012 and again from 2016-2018. Under Hayden, Louisville has had some mixed results. With 4 NCAA Tournament appearances and an ACC Atlantic Division title in 2021, in the grand scheme of the Cardinals’ program history, it has been a successful tenure. However, Hayden has posted 2 sub-.500 seasons, has not taken the Cardinals to the last 8 of the NCAA tournament (something Lolla did 5 times), and is now looking to be at risk of a 2nd straight season without postseason soccer, something Louisville has not done since ending their NCAA tournament drought in 2007. The Cardinals have also struggled mightily in their series against Wake both historically and recently, with the Deacs holding a 12-4-1 mark over Louisville. They have not fared much better with Hayden in charge, with Wake coach Bobby Muuss holding a 4-1-1 record against him. Their most recent meeting was the lone draw in the series. In that meeting in 2023, the Deacs and Cardinals played to a 2-2 score at Dr. Mark & Cindy Lynn Stadium in Louisville, with Wake stealing a late point through Hosei Kijima in the 80th minute, whose goal was assisted by current Wake captain Cooper Flax.
Tactics and Breakdown
The Cardinals primarily employ a 4-4-2 formation, and they like to press high against the ball. They aren’t quite as aggressive with the press as they have been in previous years, but they are still a hard running and physical team that looks to win the ball high up the field. Even in possession, they like to create second ball opportunities, hitting long goal kicks, crosses, and clearances in hopes of latching onto loose balls and taking advantage of a defense that is not in its shape. They are not averse to playing out of the back and building into the attacking third, but their attacking players are more suited to the transition game. Defensively, they have a lot of size along their back line, and, when the first line of their press is broken, they are still very solid and compact. This has made them one of the ACC’s best defensive units, as they sit 6th in the conference and 32nd in the nation in goals against. On the other end, however, it has been an entirely different story.
While the Cardinals are a mediocre offensive unit by the numbers, sitting 11th in the conference and 122nd nationally (out of 210) in goals scored, they have been in horrible form of late. After an 89th minute equalizer against #25 Kentucky on 9/23, the Cardinals have gone 361 minutes without a goal, suffering 4 straight shutouts. They have been held to 29 total shots over that span for an average of 7.25 shots per game. For reference, if that was their average over the full season, they would sit 208th in the nation in that category. This poor run of attacking form has coincided with the absence of winger Ryan Quintos, who had scored 2 goals in his 9 appearances this season, tied for second on the team. Even before his injury, though, it has been a poor attacking season for the Cardinals. 10 of their 15 goals came against the University of Southern Indiana and IU Indy, and they have only scored multiple goals in a game on 3 occasions: the two games mentioned above and against #25 Kentucky. In ACC play, they have only managed 1 goal in their 6 games, being outscored 8-1 by conference opponents. With all of that being said, this is exactly the kind of team that Wake struggles with. A hard nosed, pressing, physical side like Louisville always seems to cause the Deacs trouble, whether it be the Deacs struggling to play out, struggling to break through on the other end, or struggling to defend set plays. And Louisville have been very competitive against top competition, with the aforementioned win over #1 Stanford and draw against #25 Kentucky both showing this Louisville side’s resolve and focus. Even with their poor form, this is a dangerous team.
Players to Watch
For the Cardinals, midfielder Jack Lewis will be key to their success in this game. Lewis is a prototypical metronome midfielder for the Cardinals, which is to say, he keeps the team ticking in possession. He stays a bit deeper and doesn’t have as much of a hand in the attack, but his ability to progress the ball up the field and find his teammates in space will be critical in this game, especially against a Wake team that is not as aggressive against the ball and that has some trouble defending in transition. Forward Chase Vazquez will also be key to Louisville’s ability to win this game. The sophomore leads the Cardinals in goals with 3, but he has not scored since their 1-0 victory on 9/9 at Ohio State. He is a diminutive forward with some great pace and excellent work rate, but he has also shown that he has a little extra something with the ball at his feet. If Louisville are going to break their scoring duck, he may be the one to do it.
As for the Deacs, I would keep an eye on forward Harvey Sarajian. Sarajian finally had his breakout performance against Cal last week, assisting the game’s first goal and winning the penalty that ultimately decided the game. He thrives in tight spaces both in quick interchanges with his teammates and one on one with defenders. With some newfound confidence, and against a Louisville team that will really restrict any room to operate around the penalty area, he should have a big role in this game. For the same reason, I would say Nico Rabiu is another player to watch. Rabiu has played limited minutes for most of this season, but, in those minutes, he has shown a strong ability to beat defenders off of the dribble and put good service into the area. After another strong 10 minute cameo against Cal, Rabiu could be in line to take a few more minutes this week, and he could be a valuable super sub to run at tired legs.
Where to Watch
Kickoff is set for 7:00 PM EDT at Spry, and the game will be broadcast on ACCNX/ESPN+.
