CRAWFORD | Without Isaac Brown, can Louisville recalibrate to stay in the ACC hunt? | Sports

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Louisville football is facing an offensive transition from the "Isaac Brown Experience" to something less familiar and far less welcome. An AI interlude. After Isaac.

How long that will last, nobody knows. Brown exited late in Saturday's win at Virginia Tech with what appeared to be a hamstring injury. Asked for an update Monday, Louisville coach Jeff Brohm said simply "Isaac will be out for a while. We will not have him this game."

Pressed on whether Brown might miss the rest of the regular season, Brohm didn't say.

"I wouldn't go that far yet," he said. "We'll see how these next couple of weeks go."

It's the update Louisville fans feared and the reality the Cardinals must now face. Because whether you're scripting plays or writing stories, one truth has held all season: This is one offense with a healthy Isaac Brown, the most talented Louisville player with the ball in his hands since Lamar Jackson. And it's another offense without him.

The Isaac Effect

When Brown has been healthy and dynamic — 205 yards vs. Boston College, 113 at Miami, 130 at Virginia Tech, plus 100-yard efforts against EKU and James Madison — Louisville has had a home-run threat in the backfield. A player whose next touch might go the distance.

Without him, things change.

He carried just once against Bowling Green. The offense stalled.

He was less than full speed against Pitt (14 carries, 20 yards) and Virginia (13 carries, 66 yards). Louisville needed five Pittsburgh turnovers to dig out of a 17-0 hole in that win. A week later, it lost to Virginia.

This is a concern. But it's not an unfamiliar one.

Two years ago, the Cards lost Javian Hawkins and Isaac Guerendo stepped in and delivered. This time, the next man up is Keyjuan Brown, who showed the ability to take the ball and run with it Saturday, running effectively on the final drive to seal the win and logging carries of 24 and 20 yards.

"He'll definitely have to carry more of the load now," Brohm said. "And I think he can handle it."

Also looming is Duke Watson, who could return soon. He averaged 8.9 yards per carry last year and brings big-play ability. But he's only recorded 24 carries this season.

A Personnel Problem — or Identity Crisis?

That's the question.

Louisville can fill Brown's spot on the depth chart. But replacing what he means to the offense is trickier.

"We've been short at running back, in our opinion, multiple games this year," Brohm said. "It affects our thinking. … You've got to have some balance."

Duke Watson, running for a short game against James Madison, is nearing a return to the Louisville lineup, according to Cardinals' coach Jeff Brohm.
ERIC CRAWFORD

When Isaac Brown was available, balance came easy.

He's produced five of Louisville's seven plays of 40+ yards this season. The rest of the roster has two: one each from Keyjuan Brown and Chris Bell.

"Really, it's about who are our playmakers," Brohm said. "How do we get the ball in their hands? How do we spread the ball around? You can't throw it every play. You can't run every play."

The cupboard isn't bare.

Bell leads the team in receiving yards (743) and touchdowns (6). Lacy, who has 1,067 all-purpose yards, is averaging more than 130 yards per game, fifth in the nation.

Keyjuan Brown has shown burst, vision, and ball security — something Isaac Brown struggled with, having lost three fumbles in three weeks earlier this season. He's also a capable receiver and short-yardage runner. Louisville will need all of that.

But there's little margin for error.

Isaac Brown averages 8.6 yards per carry and Louisville as a team averages 5.8 yards with him in the lineup, when sacks are removed from the totals. Without him, Louisville's team rushing average dips to 4.25 per carry.

That's not a crisis. But it is a recalibration.

The passing game, often a Brohm staple, hasn't yet become a week-to-week strength. Miller Moss has won games with his arm — but not always comfortably. Interceptions, inconsistent execution, and stalled drives have made heavy reliance on the pass feel shaky at times.

Miller Moss has averaged just 161.5 yards through the air with two touchdowns and two interceptions in his past two games. When Louisville has relied on its passing game (51 throws against Pitt, 48 against UVa, the results have been mixed.)

The Stretch Ahead

This weekend's game vs. Cal offers a buffer. Maybe. Without Isaac Brown, all bets are off.

After that? There's no easing in: Clemson. SMU. Kentucky.

Louisville has shown resilience, trailing at halftime in four games and winning them all. It has the longest active streak in the nation with 22 straight games scoring 24 or more points. And it has a top-15 defense that dominated Virginia Tech.

But the margin for error is shrinking. Louisville remains squarely in the chase for a spot in the ACC championship, and with it, a chance to reach the College Football Playoff. The schedule offers opportunity. But it also demands near-perfection.

The ACC's best running back being sidelined isn't what anyone wants, but if a time is going to come when the team is going to eliminate penalties and turnovers and clean up its pass protection, now would be a good time.

Big plays by Brown have helped atone for mistakes this season, including some of his own.

But now Louisville faces life without him. Things will have to look different now. Because things are different.

Welcome to the AI period.

The big-play machine is down. But the season isn't.