Lamar Jackson Louisville vs. Marshall 9/24/2016 Photo by Mark Blankenbaker

PREVIEW: Louisville vs. Marshall

Mark BlankenbakerSeptember 24, 2016

Location: Joan C. Edwards Stadium (38,227)
Surface: Field Turf
Forecast: 80 degrees at Kickoff, Partly Cloudy
Game Time: 8:00 9-24-2016
Line: Louisville -27
TV: CBS Sports Network – Carter Blackburn, Aaron Taylor & Jenny Dell
Radio: Cardinal Football Radio Network 840 WHAS & 790 WKRD (Paul Rogers, Alex Kupper, & Jody Demling) Sirius Channel 83, XM 193
Series History: Louisville leads 16-12 (Cards lead 8-7 in Huntington)
Last Time: 17-13 Marshall 10-1-2011

My Prediction

Marshall is a place where football is important…..and they accustomed to being the underdog. Marshall has pulled itself up from the bootstraps to find its lot in the college football landscape and they’ve produced a lot of really good football teams & players. There is tradition in Huntington, WV and the Thundering Herd faithful is a proud group. With all that being said, the same can be said for Florida State…..and Syracuse for that matter.

Sometimes it’s just your turn. Right now that’s the case for the University of Louisville. There is no WAY UofL Football or its fans can take any opponent or opportunity for granted…..this is uncharted territory for the Cards and a slip up in Huntington could quickly end all of the hype surrounding the program.

Last week Marshall lost on its home field to Akron 65-38. The Herd move the ball really well offensively, but they apparently don’t do much to stop it. The Zips had 524 yards last Saturday….it stands to reason what Bobby Petrino, Lamar Jackson will be able to do when the game still matters. This probably isn’t a game where Lamar plays deep in the 2nd half either. The Cards should stampede the Herd.

Louisville 56, Marshall 23

STAT COMPARISON

Stat Comparison for Saturday Night’s match-up between the Louisville Cardinals & the Marshall Thundering Herd.

	Louisville	Marshall
Strength of Schedule	76th	230th
Scoring Offense (ppg)	65.0 (1st)	50.0 (6th)
Total Offense (ypg)	679.3 (1st)	545.0 (12th)
Passing Offense (ypg)	346.0 (13th)	379.5 (4th)
Rushing Offense (ypg)	333.33 (4th)	165.50 (77th)
Scoring Defense (ppg)	20.7 (47th)	32.5 (98th)
Total Defense (ypg)	302.0 (25th)	373.0 (64th)
Passing Defense (ypg)	188.7 (39th)	277. 0 (107th)
Rushing Defense (ypg)	113.33 (38th)	96.00 (20th)
Punt Returns (ypr)	17.50 (13th)	5.00 (86th)
Kickoff Returns (ypr)	18.89 (92nd)	22.11 (59th)
Opponent Punt Returns (ypr)	1.00 (11th)	16.33 (113th)
Opponent Kickoff Returns (ypr)	18.93 (41st)	16.86 (21st)
Punting (ypp)	38.36 (100th)	37.89 (106th)
Field Goal %	50.00% (100th)	50.00% (100th)
Opponent Field Goal %	50.0% (21st)	100.0% (91st)
First Downs (per game)	30.7 (2nd)	26.0 (19th)
Opponent First Downs (per game)	18.7 (56th)	18.5 (54th)
Penalties (ypg)	68.3 (91st)	125.0 (128th)
Turnover Margin (season)	-2 (90th)	0 (61st)
Time of Possession	29:47.67 (64th)	31:48.00 (41st)
Sacks (per game)	4.33 (5th)	3.00 (27th)
Sacks Allowed (per game)	0.67 (13th)	2.00 (66th)
Tackles for Loss (per game)	9.33 (11th)	7.5 (38th)
Tackles for Loss Allowed (per game)	1.33 (1st)	7.00 (93rd)
Interceptions (season)	2 (62nd)	1 (93rd)
Passes Defended (per game)	5.0 (34th)	4.0 (60th)
Fumbles Recovered (season)	3 (15th)	4 (6th)
Fumbles Forced (season)	4 (14th)	3 (38th)
Fumbles Lost (season)	4 (116th)	2 (56th)
Kicks/Punts Blocked (season)	–	1 (11th)
3rd Down Conversions (%)	48.48% (29th)	28.57% (112th)
Opponent 3rd Down Conversions (%)	24.49% (15th)	33.33% (48th)
4th Down Conversions (%)	–	100% (1st)
Opponent 4th Down Conversions (%)	33.33% (21st)	0 (1st)
Red Zone Conversions (%)	85.71% (62nd)	87.5% (55th)
Opponent Red Zone Conversions (%)	85.71% (67th)	66.67% (14th)
RedZone TD Conversions (%)	80.95% (17th)	75.00% (31st)
Opponent Red Zone TD Conversions (%)	71.43% (97th)	50.0% (36th)
Kickoffs (ypk)	60.16 (98th)	63.25 (47th)
Plays	217 (49th)	159 (118th)
Yards Per Play	9.39 (1st)	6.86 (19th)

Pre-Game Videos

Weekly Podcast

A few days after what could arguably Louisville Football’s greatest moment, Crums Revenge is hunkered down at the editing table working on his latest hype video. Mark and TBG do a wrap on the Florida State pre-game party, talk about the game itself, preview a little school called Marshall, and…you know…Dudes Talking.

ATTENDING

There are still quite a few tickets available to attend Louisville vs. Marshall.

Huntington, WV is less than 3 hours away and with Cardinal fans fresh off a HUGE win last week there might be a great deal of red in the stands.

The weather looks like it will be a beautiful night with temperatures ranging from 80 degrees at kickoff to 73 by game’s end. Just Partly Cloudy skies.

LISTENING

The broadcast will be available on Louisville Sports Properties and the Tune In Mobile App. The legendary voice of the Cards Paul Rogers will provide play-by-play with Alex Kupper providing color and Jody Demling from the sideline. Additionally the Cards’ call will be broadcast on Sirius Channel 83 and XM Channel 193.

WATCHING

The Cards vs. Orange is available on CBS Sports Network at 8:00. Carter Blackburn will provide the play-by-play action with Aaron Taylor adding color and Jenny Dell on the sideline.