Louisville football travels to Raleigh, North Carolina this Saturday, Oct. 3 to face the NC State Wolfpack. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m., and the game can be viewed on the ACC Network.

After losing to Wake Forest in a not-so-shocking fall from grace, the Cards will face a sold-out crowd in their first game out of the AP Top 25 this season.

Late game miscues

So far this season, North Carolina State has had its fair share of ups and downs. Coming into this matchup at 2-2, the Wolfpack’s losses tell more of a story than their wins.

Virginia shut them all the way down in the season opener, winning 34-8. NC State’s second loss, coming against Vanderbilt, was one for the ages.

The Wolfpack dominated the first half of the game, leading 24-7 just a few minutes into the third quarter. Despite then allowing the Commodores to score multiple touchdowns, they still led with less than 10 seconds remaining. However, quarterback CJ Bailey fumbled in his own endzone while trying to kill the clock. Vanderbilt recovered for a touchdown. The game was over, and instantly became one of the most shocking losses in college football history.

According to ESPN, college football teams were 1,046-1 over the last 20 seasons when having the ball and the lead with 10 seconds to go in a game. NC State made that 1046-2.

Louisville is not free from their own late-game mistakes, however, as penalties and special teams issues cost the Cardinals heavily against Wake Forest last week.

Two missed game-tying field goals in the final minutes left Louisville with a sour taste in their mouth. Kicker Carson Hilbert missed a 42-yard attempt with a little over two minutes left, and Nick Keller got his 57-yard attempt blocked on the Cards’ final shot at scoring.

When the lights were brightest, Louisville could not keep up. Despite defensive lapses throughout the game, the Cards held Wake Forest to just a field goal in the final quarter. But in that same quarter, Louisville’s offense got shut out.

Lincoln Kienholz added another great performance to his resume, however, accounting for 305 yards and three touchdowns. Still, closing out close games seems to be the Achilles’ heel of the Louisville Cardinals.

The injury bug lingers

Louisville doesn’t just have to worry about the opponent in front of them. Injuries across the team leave much in the air for game planning against the Wolfpack.

Kienholz is a game-time decision after being spotted limping off the field on the final play of the game last week. If he doesn’t play, either David Wydner or Briggs Cherry will see the field. Both backups looked comfortable in Brohm’s offense in limited snaps against FBS opponent Villanova. 

Standout receiver Lawayne McCoy is also listed as questionable ahead of the matchup along with key defensive starter Koen Entringer, who the Cardinals missed while playing Wake Forest on Saturday.

If the quarterback position remains questionable, expect the offense to rely heavily on running back Keyjuan Brown. Brown is an efficient runner, averaging 9.3 yards per carry this season. Brown, along with really any other name Brohm decides to call on, has shown an ability to keep the Cards moving consistently down the field when other facets of the offense just aren’t clicking.

Even in a worst-case scenario where all of the aforementioned questionable players are out, Louisville should come away with a win. The Cards better hope so if they’d like to keep their chances at making the ACC championship alive.

Feature Photo By Adam Mouchrani / The Louisville Cardinal