LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- For 37 years, the Indiana football program has been able to say it won its last meeting against the Louisville Cardinals.
The teams will finally play again Saturday in Indianapolis, and who knows how long the winner will have bragging rights.
With the official confirmation that IU has bought its way out of the final two years of the contract with Louisville, chances are the programs will not play for a long, long, long, long time.
The Time: Saturday, noon, Lucas Oil Stadium, downtown Indianapolis.
Where to Watch/Listen: TV — Big Ten Network Connon Onion, play by play; Brock Vereen, analyst; Meghan McKown, sidelines; U of L Radio Network Paul Rogers, play by play; Craig Swabek, analyst; Jody Demling, sidelines; Indiana Sports Radio Network Don Fischer play by play; Rhett Lewis, analyst; John Herrick, sidelines.
The Line: Spread — Louisville favored by 10 points; Over/Under total points 50.5.
The Last Time: Indiana defeated Louisville, 21-0, in 1986 in Bloomington.
The Series: The rivalry actually has been an afterthought. Although the schools the schools are roughly 100 miles apart, they’ve only played twice: IU victories in 1985 and 1986.
The Records: Louisville has opened with wins over Georgia Tech and Murray State; Indiana lost its home opener to Ohio State, 23-3, before handling FCS lightweight Indiana State last Friday.
Player to Watch for Louisville: Halfback Jawhar Jordan is a threat to break off runs of 20 yards or longer any time he touches the ball. He delivered a 74-yard run against Georgia Tech and a 72-yard burst against Murray State. Among backs with the qualifying number of carries, Jordan leads the nation with an average of 16.5 yards on 14 carries.
Player to Watch for Indiana: All eyes will be on quarterback Tayven Jackson, who was officially named IU’s No. 1 QB on Monday. Although Jackson was 18 of 21 for 236 yards against Indiana State, he did not throw a touchdown pass even though he was comfortable in the pocket all night. A week earlier, when Jackson was under stress against Ohio State, he completed only one of five throws. Expect Louisville to bring the heat.
Sideline Storylines:
- This will be the one and only game in what was supposed to be a three-game series between the programs. IU asked out of the final two games and will pay UofL $1 million not to make the trip the L&N Cardinal Stadium next season. The Hoosiers are likely to replace UofL with an FCS opponent, while Louisville has not settled on a replacement game.
- Louisville coach Jeff Brohm won four of five games against IU coach Tom Allen and the Hoosiers while at Purdue. The four wins were by an average of more than 16 points. Allen's only victory over Brohm was by three points in overtime.
- Louisville co-defensive coordinator Mark Hagen worked with Allen at Indiana from 2015-18 and Hagen also served on the IU staff in 2011-12. A native of Carmel, Indiana, Hagen started at linebacker for the Hoosiers under Bill Mallory.
- Louisville receiver Jamari Thrash has four touchdowns in two games while averaging 17 yards per reception.
- Lucas Oil Stadium seats 70,000 for football, and plenty of seats are available for Saturday’s game. Lucas Oil is the home of the Indianapolis Colts as well as the Big Ten championship game. Lucas also was the site of the 2022 college football title game that Georgia won over Alabama as well as the 2012 Super Bowl that the New York Giants won over New England.
- Indiana returned only eight starters on offense and defense, the third-lowest total of any Power 5 conference program.
- Indiana tight ends coach Kevin Wright was the head coach at Trinity High School in Louisville for one season.
- Louisville edge rusher Stephen Herron and Indiana linebacker Jacob Magnum-Farrar were teammates at Stanford.
The Quote: Louisville coach Jeff Brohm, asked about the possibility of having to defend 2 quarterbacks on Saturday:
"Well, I think they've done a good job getting both guys ready to play. (Tayven) Jackson, who we recruited at Purdue, is a very talented quarterback who can throw and run. Their other quarterback (Brendan Sorsby) is a good athlete as well. With the dynamic back (Jaylin Lucas) they have in the backfield, it's very fast and elusive. They’ve been able to mix in some option concepts as well as their normal running and passing offense. So it makes you defend a lot of different elements."
The Prediction: Louisville 28, Indiana 13.
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