Louisville will head into its third game of the season, facing off against a Bowling Green defense that is playing about as well as could be expected to start the year. Eddie George is in his first year leading the Falcons, but he brought his defensive coordinator with him from Tennessee State, which looks to have been a good decision so far. Jeff Fisher’s son, Brandon, is a longtime assistant, and his 2024 defense at Tennessee State was a key factor in getting to the playoffs.
The defensive line
for the Falcons is led by George’s son, Eriq, who leads the team in sacks. He did the same at Tennessee State last year while also leading the team in tackles for loss. Bowling Green runs a 3-3-5 style of scheme that is similar to UofL, with George being a defensive end with a little more size than a normal edge rusher. Evan Branch-Haynes is one of the few returners on this defense, and he will man the middle of the line, looking to muddy up the blocking assignments to stop the run.
The most impressive player on the team so far, in my opinion, has been Dorian Pringle at middle linebacker. Pringle is a little undersized, but he plays very fast and does a great job playing downhill against the run. You can’t miss him when you watch their games because he is always around the football. With the issues UofL had last weekend with linebackers shooting gaps against the run, Pringle will be the guy I’ll be watching all game to see what impact he will have.
The other inside linebacker for the Falcons is somewhat well-known in college football. Gideon ESPN Lampron plays the Will spot on defense, and he has also had a strong start to the season. Lampron gained some notoriety this offseason with his very real middle name after transferring in from Dayton. He has also been a good player for this defense with 3.5 tackles for loss and 7 tackles per game. Both of these players will be important for the Falcons, as I’m sure they will come in with the same idea that JMU had, which was to be aggressive and try to stop the run.
David Afogho plays the stand-up defensive end position that also doubles as a hybrid linebacker spot. He is another guy who always seems to be around the ball. He’s impressed me with his speed as a pass rusher, but his motor is what really stands out when you watch the Falcons. Louisville’s offensive line issues will need to be cleaned up, with Bowling Green’s most impactful players being the same type of smaller and athletic guys who were effective for JMU.
The Falcons’ secondary is a sum of its parts, but a few guys have stood out to me. MJ Cannon is a nickelback who has played well in the box. He had a very nice tackle for loss last week, where he nearly took the handoff from the quarterback. He splits time there with Justin Eklund, who has a bit more size and fits more of the linebacker aspect of the hybrid position.
Kal-El Pascal could make an argument to be the top player on the team ahead of Pringle with the way he has started the year. Pascal had a diving interception last week to go along with a forced fumble and 7 tackles on the day. This will be the third straight week that the Cards have to account for an active, playmaking safety who can really impact the game. They did not have a plan for Jacob Thomas last week, and he ended up with a sack/fumble and two PBUs, which included a big pass breakup in the endzone.
