Abundance of Florida State Playmakers Awaiting Louisville in Home Opener
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - It might be coming a little later in the season that it normally would, but the Louisville football program's home opener is almost here. After having to go on the road to face Syracuse and UCF, the Cardinals will be making their home debut this Friday when they host Florida State at Cardinal Stadium.
Louisville might be heading into this matchup with some momentum on their side following their bounce-back win against the Knights, and will have the added benefit of an electric crowd on their side, but their primetime showdown with the Seminoles very much presents a challenge. When looking at both side of the ball, the Noles have a plethora of playmakers that can impact the game in a variety of ways.
The Cardinals are very familiar with FSU's starting quarterback in Jordan Travis, as he began his career at Louisville before transferring after the 2018 season. Travis has had a good start to his 2022 season and has come a long way since his days at Louisville, completing 64.6 percent of his passes for 467 yards and a pair of touchdowns against Duquesne and LSU. He also has 42 yards and a score on the ground.
"I think Jordan has done a great job in the first couple of games," defensive coordinator Bryan Brown said. "You can tell he's grown a lot. He's matured a bit to where he's keeping his eyes downfield, making plays with his legs. His throwing mechanics, as well as his placement of the balls, have been really good. Really, really good in these first couple of games."
Not only that, but Travis has an excellent supporting cast around him on that side of the ball. They have been phenomenal running the football in the early goings of the year, with their 269.0 rushing yards per game ranking 6th in FBS. Each of their three top running backs - Treshaun Ward, Trey Benson and Lawrance Toafili - all have over 100 yards on the season through two games, with Ward leading the charge at 176 yards and two scores.
Travis' top two receiving targets in Ontaria "Pokey" Wilson and Johnny Wilson have also had hot starts to the year. Johnny is a mismatch nightmare at 6-foot-7 and has already tallied 111 yards, whereas Ontaria is coming off of a 102-yard performance against LSU.
"They have some excellent running backs. Offensive line seems to be better this year, they’re a year older," head coach Scott Satterfield said. "They got some transfer wide receivers, big wide receivers. ... Even their slot receiver is kind of a muscle-bound slot receiver. They’ve got physical players out there."
The Noles have also done a great job on defense to start the year, holding Duquesne to just 164 yards and LSU to 348 yards. Their total defense average of 256.0 yards per game ranks 19th in FBS.
In the front seven, two players in particular have had fast starts to the year. Albany transfer defensive end Jared Verse already has 4.0 tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks, while UCF transfer linebacker Tatum Bethune has notched 3.0 TFL's, a sack and a pass deflection.
The Noles are also well off in the secondary as well. First-Team All-ACC safety Jammie Robinson is back, as well Omarion Cooper, Travis Jay and Akeem Dent, who all three tied for the team-lead in pass defenses last year with four. Against LSU, they held QB Jayden Daniels to 25-of-34 for 209 yards and a pair of touchdowns, and preseason All-American wide receiver Kayshon Boutte to only two receptions for 20 yards.
"They're a talented defense," offensive coordinator Lance Taylor said. "They have playmakers on all three levels. Their D-line is big, the front will be the biggest front that we played this year. They're really physical up front, the linebackers are fast and mobile, and they tackle well.
"Then on the back end, most of those guys are returning starters, at least the top four guys. They've played a lot of ballgames, and are good players. They've got playmakers at every level, and it's gonna be a great challenge."
Taking down Florida State, given the amount of talent that they have on both sides of the ball, will not be an easy task. That being said, the Cardinals are up to the task, and are eager to put on for a national audience.
"We're excited about playing at home," Satterfield said. "We haven't been here, feels like in a long time and we're glad to be playing here in a normal week as far as time goes and not having that short week. We’re looking forward to it."
Kickoff between the Cardinals and the Seminoles is set for Friday, Sept. 16 at 7:30 p.m. EST.
(Photo via Melina Myers - USA TODAY Sports)
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