LOUISVILLE CARDINALS (5-3, 4-2) at GEORGIA TECH YELLOW JACKETS (2-6, 1-4)
Game Time: 7:30 p.m.
Location: Bobby Dodd Stadium: Atlanta, Ga.
Television: ACC Network
Announcers: Wes Durham (play-by-play), Max Browne (analyst), and Madison Fitzpatrick (sidelines)
Favorite: Louisville by 14.5
All-Time Series: Tied, 2-2
Last Meeting: Louisville won 31-19 on Sept. 21, 2024 in Louisville
Series History:
Statistics:
Depth Chart:
Not available.
Injury Reports:
Louisville Uniforms:
Georgia Tech Uniforms:
Relevant Videos:
About Georgia Tech:
via Keith Wynne
OFFENSE
Brent Key started last season 9-1
before losing three straight games to close out a strong season for a Georgia Tech program that hasn’t had a lot of 9-win seasons as of late. Key faced lofty expectations this season after such a good season, but things have gone about as poorly as possible for Tech. The Yellow Jackets only have one FBS win this season, and they haven’t been very competitive in most of their losses. Key will have to find a way to motivate his team as they enter the toughest stretch of their schedule.
The gamble of bringing in a backup quarterback to be your starter has worked well for Louisville. It has not gone well for Georgia Tech. Alberto Mendoza was the backup to his Heisman Trophy winning brother Fernando last season at Indiana. He entered the portal after the season, even though it would seem that he would be the next man up for the Hoosiers. That was not the case, as they went after the top quarterbacks in the portal and Brent Key made the choice to bring in Mendoza.
The Junior has been average with 10 touchdowns and 6 interceptions. He does have a high completion percentage this year at 70%, but his 222 yards per game leaves a lot to be desired. Mendoza also has 7 fumbles this year, with a lot of them coming from poor ball handling in the pocket. There have been some good moments as he has looked good throwing the ball down the field, as well as scrambling to avoid pressure. But overall, he has not done enough to unlock the potential of this offense.
Running back is a position that had high hopes going into this season with the addition of Justice Haynes from Michigan. Haynes has been solid with 78 yards rushing per game, but it is a lot of tough yardage for him. He is averaging 4.9 yards per carry as there has not been a lot of room for him to run. Haynes has the talent to be a problem for an inconsistent Louisville run defense, as he runs very hard and can break a long run if he gets into the open field.
Trelain Maddox leads the Yellow Jackets in touchdown runs this season as the change of pace back for this team. Maddox has good speed in the open field while also showing the ability to make people miss. Maddox and Malachi Hosely could be factors in this game if they are both healthy. Tech will look to sustain drives to keep Louisville’s offense on the sidelines. That will take a good effort from these running backs.
Former Louisville commit, Jordan Allen as emerged as the top receiver for Tech this year. The speedy sophomore has shown that he has genuine playmaking ability as a slot receiver as well as a returner. Allen has 46 catches on the season, but his lack of explosive plays are part of the reason the offense is struggling. Allen has one touchdown this year, and his longest catch is for 46 yards. What is really shocking to me is that they have not used him on jet sweeps or other handoffs. He only has one carry this year.
Dalen Penson and Kevin Roche are the other top targets for this Tech offense. Pinson is an outside receiver who is the most likely player to be utilized for deep shots down the field. However, he can make plays at all three levels of the offense and the offense does a good job of finding situations where he wins. Roche is a 6-9 tight end who is always open. Mendoza has done a good job of putting the ball in spots where Roche can use his height. He is not the fastest player, but he can run well enough to get open down the field. Look for him to be the top option in the red zone.
Key’s teams have been known for their very good offensive lines, but losing Geep Wade as the position coach appears to be a very big deal for this team. The Tech offensive line is among the worst in the country per PFF, and they don’t pass the eye test either. Pass rushers have had a field day getting home with any sort of pressure approach. Mendoza has not helped himself, but if your line can’t handle any blitz, you are not going to have a lot of time to throw the ball. Throw in their inability to open up rushing lanes for the backs, and this line has been a true letdown for this offense.
DEFENSE
Brent Key was in the unenviable position this offseason of having to replace coordinators on both sides of the ball. Heading into November, it looks like he may have to at least consider replacing one of those coaches. Georgia Tech’s defense has underperformed for much of the season, and it is getting worse as the season progresses. This staff has to wonder just how much effort the defense will give down the stretch with nothing to play for.
Former Card Tawfiq Thomas is the top player up front for Tech at defensive tackle. Thomas has 21 run stuffs on the season to go along with 10 pressures. Thomas is the one player up front who is consistently disruptive, and he looks like he has finally reached the potential he showed as a recruit. I would expect him to play with a little more effort against his former team after not getting much of a chance to see the field here.
Noah Carter and Taje McCoy have been the most consistent defensive linemen other than Thomas up front, though Carter has missed a lot of time and is now reportedly no longer with the team. The defensive line as a whole has not done a great job of creating pressure on the quarterback or being disruptive in general. But these guys have talent, and they will make plays if the Louisville offensive line continues to allow penetration up front.
Georgia Tech lost their leader on defense a few weeks ago when Kyle Efford decided to medically retire from football. Efford made a lot of plays for this defense, while also being a guy you could trust to get everyone lined up correctly. E.J. Lightsey has taken the baton as the leader of the defense, as he has been around for a long time in Atlanta. He and Cayman Spaulding have both had solid seasons in the middle of this defense.
Spaulding is the play maker on this defense with 7 tackles for loss on the year. He pops when you watch their games because he is always around the football and he gets downhill very well to make plays in the backfield. While Lightsey is the steady veteran, Spaulding is the player most likely to cause problems for Louisville. However, this defense has not played well this year, so the Cards should not allow these guys to take over the game.
Tech’s secondary isn’t tested very much because they are so poor against the run, but when they are tested, they don’t get a very good grade. Tech is 19th in the country in passes attempted against them, but they are 84th in passer rating. Teams are getting what they want against them when they have to throw the ball and this secondary isn’t providing much resistance. On top of the numbers above, they are ranked 129th in passes defended. An average pass rush mixed with a secondary that isn’t playing very tight in coverage, is a bad combination. The Cards will have to run the ball well this weekend, but they should also have success through the air when needed.
Motivational Tweets:
Nothing.
I’m not sure a Georgia Tech fan on the planet has said one thing about this game. At least they have … the Braves?
Excitement Level: 5.1
The whole family getting the flu isn’t helping here. Win this one and the excitement level jumps for next week in Chapel Hill.
Game Attire: Red Louisville Football sweatshirt
We’re bringing the Charlie Strong era looks back for a weekend.
Pregame Meal: District 6 leftovers
Best Vietnamese in the city outside of Vietnam Kitchen.
Bold Prediction: Brody Foley catches a touchdown pass
This might be the biggest swing of the year considering how little Foley has been used this season, but we hit on the blocked punt last week so we’re feeling swaggy.
Jeff Brohm Trick Play Alert Level: Gray (Well below average)
Trying and failing so miserably a week ago knocks the alert level down considerably.
Predicted Star of the Game: Koen Entringer
This has been the most accurate section throughout the season, and we hit again last week on Tre Richardson. Calling my shot here and saying Entringer gives us easily his most complete game in a Cardinal uniform.
Notable:
—A win by Louisville on Saturday would be the 100th in the head coaching career of Jeff Brohm.
—Louisville is looking for its first four-game winning streak since going 4-0 to start the 2025 season.
—Georgia Tech is looking to avoid its first four-game losing streak under head coach Brent Key. The Yellow Jackets haven’t lost four consecutive games since the 2021 season.
—Louisville is one of four FBS teams to have scored at least 27 points in every game this season. Miami, Ole Miss and Boise State are the others.
—Louisville is 1-1 in true road games so far this season, and 1-2 overall in games played away from L&N Stadium.
—Three of the previous four meetings between Louisville and Georgia Tech were played on a Friday. The 2024 game was the lone Saturday contest before this year’s.
—Louisville has had at least four rushing touchdowns in each of the last three games, its longest such streak since 2004.
—Georgia Tech is playing at night (7 p.m. or later, local time) for the fifth time in nine games this season.
—Louisville is second in the FBS averaging 6.25 yards per carry and 29 rushing touchdowns, trailing only
Army in both. Louisville’s current 225.1 yards per game average would be its highest total on the ground
since 2017, Lamar Jackson’s final season.
—Georgia Tech is one of only six FBS teams that rank among the top 25 nationally in both kickoff return yardage (13th – 27.3 avg.) and punt return yardage (22nd – 14.0 avg.).
—A win by Louisville on Saturday would make the Cardinals bowl eligible for a sixth consecutive season.
—Louisville is 0-1 in true road games against Georgia Tech, losing to the Yellow Jackets at Bobby Dodd Stadium in 2020.
—Georgia Tech defensive tackle Tawfiq Thomas started his collegiate career at Louisville. Thomas played the 2022 and 2023 seasons at U of L before transferring to Colorado. He had 12 tackles in 22 games over two seasons.
—Georgia Tech Offensive Quality Control coach Robbie Bell played collegiately at Louisville from 2016-20. Bell started 31 games on the offensive line in his Cardinal career.
—During its current three-game losing streak, Georgia Tech has given up at least 34 points in all three defeats.
—Louisville head coach Jeff Brohm is 2-0 in games against Georgia Tech.
—Georgia Tech head coach Brent Key is 0-2 in games against Louisville.
—Seven of Louisville last eight losses have come by three points or fewer. All three of U of L’s losses this season have come by exactly three points.
—Louisville has scored at least 24 points in 33 of its last 35 games.
—With its win over No. 23 Duke on Oct. 10, Georgia Tech is 8-1 against nationally ranked ACC opponents under head coach Brent Key. The Yellow Jackets have been unranked for all eight victories.
—Louisville is 168-179-5 all-time in the month of November.
—Louisville is 8-5 in the month of November under head coach Jeff Brohm.
—Louisville is 5-10 all-time in games played on Nov. 7. U of L’s most recent appearance on the date was a 41-17 home win over Syracuse in 2015.
—Louisville is 17-2 in ACC regular season games under Jeff Brohm when allowing fewer than 30 points.
—Louisville is 57-47 all-time in ACC games, and 20-10 in ACC games under Jeff Brohm.
—Louisville has been the most explosive offense in the country through the first eight games of the season. The Cardinals have already racked up 58 plays from scrimmage of 20 yards or more. Louisville leads the country in plays from scrimmage of 20+, 30+, 50+ 60+ and 90+ yards, and is second in 40+ and 80+ yards.
—Louisville has scored 12 touchdowns of 50 yards or more, with at least one in all eight games. Those 12 touchdowns have been scored by six different players – I. Brown, K. Brown, Kienholz, McCoy, Richardson and Skinner. Louisville is the only FBS school with 12 touchdowns of 50 yards or more.
—Louisville is one of only seven power conference programs to win at least nine games in each of the last three years.
—Louisville has won 50 consecutive games when shutting out its opponent in the second half.
—Under Jeff Brohm, Louisville is 18-2 in games in which it rushes for 200 yards or more.
—Louisville is one of eight FBS teams to score in every game it has played for the last 26 years, joining Boise State, Florida, Georgia, Nebraska, Southern California, Texas Christian, and Virginia Tech.
—Louisville is 16-1 under head coach Jeff Brohm when it doesn’t commit a turnover, with the lone loss coming earlier this season against Ole Miss.
—Louisville is 22-1 under Jeff Brohm when it wins the turnover battle and 11-14 when it doesn’t.
—Louisville is 26-3 over the past five seasons when shutting out its opponent in the first quarter.
—Louisville has won 40 of its last 45 games when holding teams to less than 300 yards of offense.
—Louisville has won 18 straight games when holding its opponent scoreless in the first half.
—Since 2019, Louisville is 41-5 when winning the turnover battle, and just 8-28 when losing it.
—Louisville is 29-3 under Jeff Brohm when allowing fewer than 30 points.
—Louisville is 215-17 all-time when scoring 35 or more points in a game.
—Louisville is 146-4 all-time when scoring 40 or more points in a game, including an 87-3 mark since 2000. The Cards are 6-124 all-time when allowing opponents to score 40 or more points.
—Louisville is currently riding a consecutive game scoring streak that spans 335 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 8th-longest nationally.
Quotable:
—“I think they’re a talented football team. They have really good players. Coach Key is tough, and we’re going to have to come right to play to win.” —Jeff Brohm
—”The record is not like how we want it, but like I said, I feel like guys are still bought in. They still want it, and I’m right behind them, and I’m trying my best to even push them harder as best as I can.” —Georgia Tech DE Taje McCoy
—“Look, there’s things that have to change. All right. There are things that will change, but I do not by any means think that the program is broke. The program is not functioning worth a damn right now. All right. On the field, right? That’s on me to make the necessary adjustments, tweaks, changes, whatever it is, right? For it to improve and play to the level, and I talk about standards, to the standard that everyone out there that wears white and gold expects, including myself.” —Georgia Tech head coach Brent Key
—”They do a lot of shifts in motion. So we got to be great with our eyes, see pitchers before they happen, just play sound defense. I think we can have a whole defense success if everybody just be on the same page. Just having good eyes, playing good team football, being where you’re supposed to be, filling the holes properly, you know, just feeding the blitzes, doing all that, and I feel like we can contain them guys.” —Georgia Tech DE Taje McCoy
—”We’ve had close games with Georgia Tech every year. Every year we found a different way to kind of win and pull it out first year. … Once again, it’s conference play. You got to play efficient football. You got to know exactly what you’re doing, improve as the year goes on. I think it’s important that we find a way to compete and go on the road and win a good football game.” —Jeff Brohm
Card Chronicle Prediction: Louisville 38, Georgia Tech 18
