Games to follow during Louisville Football’s second bye week

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Another weekend of college football is coming! But unfortunately for fans of the Louisville football program, they will have to wait until next weekend for the Cardinals to take the field as they enter their second and final bye week of the season.

Although No. 22 Louisville (6-3, 4-2 ACC) won’t be in action this weekend, there are still plenty of college football games involving future and past Cardinals opponents. This gives fans both a glimpse into the future of what to expect, and perhaps a team to root for in hopes of boosting Louisville’s strong schedule.

Here are a few games for Louisville fans to keep an eye on this weekend:

– Channel: ESPN at 12:00 PM EST
– Future date/past result: Miami defeated Louisville 52-45 on Saturday, October 19; Louisville defeated Georgia Tech 31-19 on Saturday, September 21.

On the one hand, quarterback Cam Ward and the rest of that Miami offense look like an unstoppable force. On the other hand, the Canes’ defense still looks like they can’t stop anyone.

Normally, since this is a road game against a good Georgia Tech team, this would have fall game implications. That said, quarterback Haynes King is in danger of missing his third straight game – and GT hasn’t looked nearly the same without him.

There are two schools of thought: cheer for Miami and SMU for SOS purposes (and perhaps a very slim chance of getting into the College Football Playoff as an at-large), or cheer for the chaos scenario with two losses in the ACC. The former seems much more feasible.

– Channel: The CW at 12pm EST
– Future date/past result: Louisville defeated Boston College 31-27 on Friday, October 25

This may not be the biggest game of the weekend in the ACC, but it’s an intriguing game if you ask me. Chestnut Hill may not be Death Valley, but it can be a tough place for good teams to play.

It’s hard to determine how good Syracuse really is. Sure, they have a winning record and had a good win at UNLV, but they are armored by Pitt and have a very bad home loss to Stanford.

In the meantime, Boston College just needs some positive momentum. They have suffered a massive midseason slump, losing three games in a row after starting 4-1. Maybe the bye week will serve them well.

– Channel: ESPN at 3:30 PM EST
– Future date/past result: Louisville defeated Clemson 33-21 on Saturday, November 2

Hearing this right is the best game the ACC has to offer this weekend. It may not be a night game, but Lane Stadium is a top-five (maybe top-three) home field advantage in the league, and has helped disrupt specials in the past.

Clemson had been rolling since their opener teams, but that was likely due to their relatively easy schedule in ACC play, as they last got punched in the mouth at home against Louisville. Meanwhile, Virginia Tech seemed to have found its footing before swallowing a lead in Syracuse last week.

A Clemson win would undoubtedly boost Louisville’s SOS, but a Virginia Tech win would keep the Tigers from potentially surpassing Louisville in the CFP poll. Time will tell which outcome will favor the Cards more this week.

– Channel: NBC at 7:30 PM EST
– Future date/past result: Notre Dame defeated Louisville 31-24 on Saturday, September 28

I won’t spend much time here as the records of the two teams competing speak for themselves. Notre Dame, a CFP candidate that has really started to reach peak efficiency in the past month, while Florida State has been a complete and total disaster in every sense of the word.

On paper, this game shouldn’t even be close, especially since it’s set in South Bend. But then again…Notre Dame should have wiped the floor with NIU, and we all know what happened there.

– Channel: NBC at 7:30 PM EST
– Future date/past result: Louisville defeated Virginia 24-20 on Saturday, October 12; Louisville hosts Pitt on Saturday, November 23

While Miami and SMU are in the driver’s seat for the ACC title game, Pitt still has a slim chance of reaching Charlotte. Considering how much SMU has worked them on both sides of the ball, the Panthers will certainly want to make a statement.

Meanwhile, Virginia is just trying to get back on track. They promised to start the year but are now coming off three straight losses and having an incredibly difficult end to their regular season.

Normally, Louisville fans would want Virginia to win for SOS purposes. But if Pitt comes out on top, a top-25 matchup next weekend is all but assured. Looking at the rest of college football, this could even mean a College GameDay appearance.

(Photo of Louie: Jamie Rhodes – Imagn Images)

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