Final Thoughts and Observations on Louisville vs. Georgia Tech

The Cardinals scored touchdowns in all three phases of the game to defeat the Yellow Jackets to kick off conference play.

Sep 21, 2024; Louisville, Kentucky, USA; Louisville Cardinals wide receiver Jadon Thompson (2) runs the ball against Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets defensive back Ahmari Harvey (3) during the second half at L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium. Louisville defeated Georgia Tech 31-19. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images / Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Louisville football program looked far from perfect against Georgia Tech at times, but thanks to massive plays in all three phases of the game, the Cardinals were still able to secure a 31-19 win over the Yellow Jackets in their ACC opener.

Before we close the book on the game and transition to the matchup at Notre Dame, I wanted to provide some closing thoughts and observations from the game against the Yellow Jackets:

• First of all, yes, Louisville looked far from perfect against Georgia Tech. Anyone who claims otherwise didn't actually watch the game, or watched it with rose-colored glasses. But, as the saying goes, you'd rather win ugly than lose pretty - and while it was ugly, it was very much a win. I had a feeling that Louisville might come out disjointed just because they hadn't played anyone with a pulse to start the season and were coming off of a bye week. However, it was great to see them work through the adversity and find a way to come out on the other side with a win.
• I was very, very curious to see how the play calling would look in this game considering how vanilla it had been against Austin Peay and Jax State. Offensively, I did like a few of the wrinkles that I saw in this game. Having Ahmari Huggins-Bruce come out of the backfield, the play action bootleg on fourth down, the five-wide tight formation, the triple reverse screen pass, utilization of the shallow crossing routes against a GT linebacking corps that struggled in pass coverage. There was a lot to like without feeling like Brohm emptied the playbook. That being said, I didn't understand why Brohm didn't abandon the run at some point during this game. Tech has shown this season that they are good against the run, and the same rang true in this game, but they kept dialing up run calls (27 rushing attempts to 19 passing attempts). Defensively, I think it could have been called a little better by Ron English. Yes, they did a great job bottling up run plays for running backs. But it didn't seem like Louisville changed much in their scheme from Jax State where they also faced another rushing quarterback. Haynes King was able to make far too many plays with his legs. But then again, Brohm did mention in the postgame that there are some players who can just bust up your defensive scheme no matter how tailored the calls are for them. Still, this is something that Louisville should continue to monitor moving forward.
• Before I go any further, it has to be reiterated at how hot it was during this game. Sure, weather is not an excuse for some of the mistakes made, but it was so hot and humid that even the press box uncomfortable. I can't imagine how exhausting and draining it was having to play in this game.
• First, I'll start with the offense. At face value, you'd think that only putting up 326 yards of offense against this Georgia Tech secondary is cause for alarm. However, the two scoop-and-scores plus the one-play safety essentially scrubbed three whole drives for Louisville. In fact, their 46 total plays were the lowest in a win since 2004.
• Tyler Shough continues to look extremely impressive and a natural fit for a traditional Jeff Brohm offense. He's not afraid to take downfield risks and has the arm capabilities for them, but - for the first time in his career - he seems to be cutting down on the amount of unnecessary risks that he has been prone to over the years. Having zero turnovers in three games is impressive regardless of who you're facing.
• Ja'Corey Brooks is him, no other way to put it. Very few receivers can do a full pirouette up the sideline due to interference, and still have the concentration and reaction time necessary to remain focuses and catch a long touchdown pass. Having Caullin Lacy out hasn't been ideal, but he has looked like every bit of the receiver he was during his first two years at Alabama.
• We're finally getting a taste of what a traditional Jeff Brohm looks like, not only because Brooks is going off, but there are plenty of pass catching options around him and the offense isn't having to overly rely on him. Chris Bell looks like he is in the middle of a potential breakout year, while tight ends Mark Redman and Jamari Johnson have unlocked the middle of the field for the passing offense. While Lacy is in line to return soon (potentially even next week), hopefully Jadon Thompson isn't lost for a significant amount of time. He seemed to be taking a notable step forward in his first healthy year at Louisville.
• When it comes to the running backs and the offensive line's efforts in run blocking, I'm not going to sound the alarm. The one thing the Georgia Tech does well on defense is defending the run, and the certainly did that well. That being said, I was surprised that Brohm went back to the run as often as he did since it wasn't working. On the other side of that coin, I would have liked to see a tad but more production of out Donald Chaney Jr. since Maurice Turner is going to be out for a few weeks. The other three freshman backs on the roster combined for as much yardage as he did on the same combined carries (10 rushes for 23 yards). It's a very small sample size, but maybe Louisville needs to dial back on the amount of designed runs called - at least for the next few weeks.
• Another reason to support this is that Louisville's offensive line has bulldozed in pass protection in recent weeks. They posted an 89.2 pass block grade against Jax State, then followed that up with a 92.5 grade vs. the Jackets. With how well Shough and Co have done, combined with the line's work in pass pro, Louisville should probably air the ball out a little more.
• Alright, now onto the defense. It was a bit of an up-and-down affair as far as how this side of the field performed, so I'll start with the good. Yes, the run defense wasn't the good against Haynes King, and that is absolutely something that needs to be corrected before this team faces guys like Riley Leonard and Cam Ward. That being said, the defensive line and the front seven as a whole did a great drop when it came to defending the running backs and generating pass rush. Rene Konga and Tramel Logan in particular are two guys who have had an incredibly hot start to this season. My one complaint here is that I think it's time that they stop playing Ashton Gillotte on the interior. I get that scouts want to see his versatility, but he hasn't been nearly as effective as he is on the edge.
• Now for the bad. It's early, but it seems like Louisville is having some issues when it comes to pass coverage. For starters, the coverage out of the linebacker corps - for as good as they perform against the run - has been dreadful. There were several instances where Georgia Tech busted Louisville up the seam or on crossing routes, and the linebackers were completely out of position to make the play. Additionally, the pass coverage by the defensive backs has been hit-or-miss. Guys like Corey Thornton, Tamarion McDonald and D'Angelo Hutchinson have done well, but others like Devin Neal and even Quincy Riley have struggled.
• While we're on this subject: it's time to take Riley off of punt returns. I get that he wants to showcase his capabilities for the NFL, but he's already a bit hobbled, and Louisville can't afford to lose him for a decent amount of time with how banged up their cornerback room is at present moment.
• I was a massive critic of Louisville's special teams last season, as people know. But some credit has to go to Karl Maslowski for their efforts so far this season. Whether it's fielding kickoffs and punts or defending them, the Cardinals look much improved here. You'd like to see this momentum keep going, but it's a good start.
• I'll mention this only because I'm sure people will get upset if I don't - yes, the officials in this game were less than ideal. Georgia Tech shouldn't have been allowed a timeout on the bobbled snap, Malik Rutherford probably bobbled that catch, and there was a lot of missed pass interference calls. That being said, Louisville committed enough mistakes themselves that blaming the refs for how disjointed they looked is not exactly an accurate statement in my opinion.
• I'll close with this thought: like I said earlier, you'd much rather win ugly than lose pretty. But with a massive showdown at Notre Dame coming, Louisville has a lot that they need to clean up and correct if they are to leave South Bend with a win. The Fighting Irish are certainly vulnerable, but Louisville has to do a better job at execution.

(Photo of Jadon Thompson: Jamie Rhodes - Imagn Images)

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