By Beau Kilpatrick—
This weekend in college football is full of exciting games among ranked teams. Some of these teams are trying to defend their position at the top, others are fighting for prime bowl games and the Louisville Cardinals are fighting to regain a spot in college football’s top four.
The No. 5 Cardinals travel to the University of Virginia to take on the unranked Cavaliers Saturday. It would be a mistake for fans to expect a monstrous score by the Cards this weekend because UVA coach Bronco Mendenhall, may dull down the game like Duke did two weeks ago.
“Virginia coach Bronco Mendenhall gave a nod to Duke’s approach against Louisville, when the Blue Devils decided to milk the play clock as much as possible to keep the ball away from Lamar Jackson,” ESPN’s Andrea Adelson said.
“That gives us the best chance, a similar approach,” Mendenhall said.
The most lucrative ACC game this weekend for Cards fans is No. 3 Clemson vs. No. 12 Florida State. A FSU win could help Louisville progress towards an ACC championship game. If Clemson loses, the Cardinals would rise into the top four if they win in Virginia.
No. 10 West Virginia and No. 8 Baylor are both undefeated in the Big 12. One of these teams could knock the Cardinals out of contention by winning their conference and remaining undefeated. West Virginia travels to Oklahoma State while Baylor takes on the Texas Longhorns.
No. 2 Michigan and No. 7 Nebraska remain undefeated in the Big 10. If either are able to finish undefeated and win the Big 10 title, they will secure their spot in the CFP. Nebraska faces a big challenge this weekend when they go to Wisconsin to challenge the No. 11 Badgers. If Wisconsin beats Nebraska, it will take some heat off of Louisville’s position in the top five.
Top-ranked Alabama and second-ranked Michigan appear to be secure in their positions at the top. The team that Louisville is watching closely is the No. 4 Washington Huskies. Washington is undefeated in the Pac-12, but they will be tested this week when they travel to the desert to challenge No. 17 Utah. If Washington loses and U of L wins, the Cards should move into the fourth spot.
If Clemson loses along with the Huskies, Louisville could potentially return to the No. 3 spot. Louisville fans should unite to cheer on Florida State for the sake of U of L’s position in the ACC and they should hope for a Utah victory to push the Cards into the top four.
Photo by Dalton Ray / The Louisville Cardinal
