Issac Guerendo dives

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Remember that Atlantic Coast Conference football media day projected order of finish?

The one that had Louisville slotted at No. 8, behind North Carolina State and Duke, teams the Cardinals handled this season?

Well, the media was a little closer with its prediction for Virginia, the Louisville's seventh ACC opponent this season.

For the Cavaliers, the forecast was 14th place. UVa (1-4) is actually tied for 11th with Pittsburgh, ahead of only Wake Forest (1-5) and winless Syracuse (0-5).

I don't have to remind you the score of the Louisville-Pittsburgh game. Anything is possible, but the Cavaliers will not be able to post their first winning season since 2019.

The Time: Thursday, 7:30 p.m., L&N Cardinal Stadium.

How to Watch/Listen: TV — ESPN Matt Barrie play by play; Dan Mullen, analyst; Harry Lyles, sidelines; Radio Louisville Sports Network 93.9 FM, 970 AM, Paul Rogers, play by play; Craig Swabek, analyst; Jody Demling, sidelines.

The Line: Point spread Louisville by 20; Over/under total points scored 50.5

The Last Time: The Cards won in Charlottesville, 24-17, last season.

The Series: Louisville leads 6-5 and the Cards have a 5-4 advantage since joining the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2014.

The Records: Virginia is 2-7. The Cavaliers lost their first five to Tennessee, James Madison, Maryland, North Carolina State and Boston College. They beat William & Mary and North Carolina before losing their last two to Miami and Georgia Tech. Louisville is 8-1 with the loss to Pittsburgh and wins over Georgia Tech, Murray State, Indiana, Boston College, N.C. State, Notre Dame, Duke and Virginia Tech.

Player to Watch Virginia: Quarterback. Can't fill in the blank on that one until game time. It might be Tony Muskett. It might be Anthony Colandrea. Muskett is dealing with an injury and is considered day-to-day. Neither quarterback ranks in the top 20 in the ACC in passing yards. They have combined to throw 13 touchdown passes and 12 interceptions, including at least one pick in the last seven games.

Player to Watch Louisville: With only a five-day turnaround and Isaac Guerendo coming off a career best performance, Jawhar Jordan's availability on a tender hamstring will be an interesting decision for Jeff Brohm. Jordan, the ACC's leading rusher, was a game-time decision against Virginia Tech. Could Brohm choose to rest Jordan for the Miami game next week, even though Louisville lost the only game Jordan missed the majority of the snaps?

Sideline Storylines:

  1. Four of Virginia's losses have been by three points or less.
  2. Virginia's 21-17 at No. 10 North Carolina three weeks ago was the program's first road win over a top-10 opponent in school history.
  3. UVa receiver Malik Washington leads the ACC in receiving yards (1,044) and catches (79).
  4. Eight of the nine schools Virginia has played this season have records of .500 or better. According to the Sagarin Ratings, Virginia's schedule ranks No. 28 in difficulty while Louisville's is No. 57.
  5. Virginia has led by double figures in six games.
  6. Louisville's current 10-game home winning streak is the third-longest in program history and the longest since 2007.
  7. Louisville ranks first in the ACC in rushing defense and second in total defense as well as scoring defense.
  8. Louisville has limited five consecutive opponents to less than 100 yards rushing and 300 yards of total offense.
  9. A victory would give Louisville it's first nine-win season since 2016.

The Quote: With a bowl trip no longer in Virginia's future this season, coach Tony Elliott was asked about motivation for his team:

"The biggest thing is we're playing for pride. I've got a group of seniors that we want to send out the right way. As a competitor, it doesn't matter. It goes into competitive stamina.

"My message for the guys post-practice today is we've got to decide. We've got three games left, and we want to decide that going forward this is what the standard is going to be.

"Even though we may not have accomplished our goals, at least we're changing the mindset and setting the standard for what's going to happen these next three weeks and then going into the future."

The Pick: Louisville 38, Virginia 14.

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