On Nov. 8, the Louisville Cardinals took the field as the No. 14 team in the AP poll. They were 7-1 with legitimate ACC championship and College Football Playoff aspirations. Since then, though, they’ve fallen apart. Losers of 3 straight, the Cardinals now hope to salvage what’s left of their season by beating the Kentucky Wildcats and winning the Governor’s Cup.
While Louisville was sliding out of the AP poll and CFP rankings, the Wildcats (5-6, 2-6 SEC) were slowly finding themselves. Kentucky beat Auburn to open November, then whipped Florida and Tennessee Tech (an unbeaten FCS squad) before getting stomped by Vanderbilt last weekend.
Mark Stoops and Co. could reach a bowl game for the ninth time in 10 seasons with a victory against the Cardinals, who they’ve beaten in 5 of their last 6 matchups. Louisville, of course, would love nothing more than to keep the Wildcats from partaking in such festivities. According to ESPN’s Bill Connelly, the Cardinals should do just that. His SP+ model projects Louisville will beat Kentucky 29-22 on Saturday.
The Cardinals are 3-point favorites over the Wildcats on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Governor’s Cup kicks off at noon ET (ACC Network) on Nov. 29.
