Points of Emphasis: Louisville vs. Virginia

Here are the more significant storylines to follow ahead of Louisville football's matchup vs. the Cavaliers:

Louisville Cardinals running back Keyjuan Brown (22) celebrates his touchdown during their game against the Jacksonville State Gamecocks on Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024 at L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium in Louisville, Ky. / Clare Grant/Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Louisville football has a critical game on tap this weekend, traveling to Charlottesville to face Virginia in their first road ACC game of the season.

Here are some of the more notable storylines heading into Saturday's game:

Injury Report

For Louisville, they have a trio of impactful injuries heading into the Virginia game

Starting left tackle Monroe Mills suffered what appeared to be a knee injury in the SMU game, with head coach Jeff Brohm saying it will "knock him out" for a while. However, Brohm does anticipate him to return at some undisclosed point in time.

As for star corner Quincy Riley, he's still questionable to return from his foot injury, with Brohm mentioning it will be "when he feels healthy enough to play." Starting defensive tackle Dezmond Tell had to miss the SMU game with a "lower extremity injury," with Brohm calling him "doubtful" to play against the Cavaliers.

On the Virginia side of things, they have a handful of impactful injuries that they're dealing with as well.

Safety Antonio Clary, Virginia's leading tackler, suffered a knee injury in the previous game against Boston College and will likely miss this weekend's game. Starting wide receiver Chris Tyree and Trell Harris could also miss the game against the Cardinals, although head coach Tony Elliott is more optimistic regarding Harris.

Communication Issues Handicapping Louisville's Defense

While there are several factors that go into Louisville's two-game skid since opening up at 3-0, arguably the biggest factor has been communication issues on the defensive side of the ball.

Against Georgia Tech and Notre Dame, there were a handful of times in which players were out of position or simply not ready for the upcoming play. While some of this is due to simple missed assignments, the primary issue is that the defensive staff has had trouble getting the calls to the players in time with the new in-helmet communication.

SMU saw this, and took full advantage of it. Not only did the Mustangs put up 482 totals yards with their up tempo offense, but quarterback Kevin Jennings finished with 394 of those yards. SMU used this to power their 34-27 victory.

“The simplest way to define it is that when the balls snapped, we need to be lined up and on the same page about the call," Brohm said. "If we get beat, let’s get beat because the other team outplayed us. That has not taken place.

"There needs to be less checks, or in my opinion, zero checks, so when a call is made, we can run it. Everyone needs to understand the play so certain things can’t detour us from making the play. I do think that the calls need to get in quicker. We need a plan to make sure that happens."

Virginia Performing Well in First Half of 2024 Season

In Virginia's first two years under head coach Tony Elliott, the Cavaliers showed very little signs of progress. They went just 6-16 over that span, winning only three games in each season and firmly putting Elliott on a seat that was starting to warm up.

Approaching the halfway point of the 2024 season, Virginia looks like a much improved team. They're 4-1 to already set their most wins in a season under Elliott, and are 2-0 in ACC play with wins over Wake Forest and Boston College.

Dual-threat quarterback Anthony Colandrea has taken a step forward as a passer and overall player, helping Virginia post the No. 44 total offense in the nation up to this point. The Cavaliers' defense is still imperfect, but has improved from the 101st defense last year to 86th through five games this season.

Part of Virginia's success has been their ability to finish games. In their two league games so far, the Cavaliers have outscored Wake Forest and Boston College 32-0 in the fourth quarter.

"They’re an experienced team whose quarterback is playing well, they settled on him and he’s done a really good job," Brohm said of Virginia. "He can run and pass which gives them options and uses his ability to escape the pocket, giving them opportunities to score. Their defense is solid and at times they’ve played tremendously well. I think they’re a solid football team that’s gone through a couple seasons where they’ve had some tough losses but have learned from them.

"They have improved because of it and that’s how it works. They’re very competitive, they play hard and are well coached. The quarterback play as well as their defense is their strength.”

Louisville 'Conscious' of Isaac Brown's Efficiency Over Other Running Backs

With Maurice Turner still on the shelf due to injury, Louisville has split up the reps in the running back room fairly evenly. Isaac Brown and Donald Chaney both got 10 carries against SMU, with Brown having 39 for the season and Chaney at 32. Keyjuan Brown is also someone that has gotten plenty of run with 27 total carries, while Duke Watson has only gotten 13 carries and didn't see action against the Mustangs.

At this point, we have a large enough sample size to suggest that Louisville should probably abandon the running back-by-committee approach and stick with Isaac Brown as the primary guy.

The true freshman has been lights out to start the season, leading UofL in rushing with 362 yards and a touchdown. He's also been a threat through the air, catching 13 passes for 91 yards and a touchdown.

Comparatively speaking, the other backs haven't been nearly as efficient. Despite having just seven less carries, Chaney has just 103 yards for a 3.2 per carry average (compared to Brown's 9.3). Even Keyjuan Brown has been more efficient with 160 total yards for a 5.9 average.

When asked if Louisville was going to keep evenly spilitting the reps amongst the running back room or put a focus on Brown moving forward, Brohm stated that he and his staff were "conscious" that he needs to be utilized fairly often.

“Issac is a true freshman, so we have tried not to throw to much at him at first, he has shown the capabilities," he said. "He plays hard, he doesn’t miss practice, he has no fear. He makes catches, he make hard catches, he makes plays that normal freshmen wouldn’t at time.

"So yes, he has been very productive for us, we need to make sure he gets plenty  of touches, we still need all the other running backs to perform well and do their job. The more playmakers you have the better your team will be, but yes we are conscious that he is a guy that need to get his touches.”

Louisville's Offensive Line Struggling in Pass Protection

While Louisville's defense has certainly played a big role in why they are on a two-game skid, an underrated factor here is that their offensive line has not lived up to expectations - especially in pass protection.

Against SMU, quarterback Tyler Shough rarely had a clean pocket, and had to scramble often to make plays. The advanced stats back this up too, as he was pressured 13 times in the game against the Mustangs. According to Pro Football Focus, Louisville finished with a 44.0 pass blocking grade, which is well below the average mark of 60.0

It's not just been a one-game performance, either. Louisville finished with pass-blocking grades below 60.0 against Austin Peay and Notre Dame as well. For the season, their 64.6 pass block grade comes in at just 88th in the FBS and 53rd at the power conference level.

"It all goes back to communication," offensive guard Michael Gonzalez said. "There's five guys, so four people can do right, and one person can do wrong, and it's messed up for everyone. Everybody taking turns having their one bad play, it affects drives.

"We had a few first down sacks, first down holdings, and those kill drives. You eliminate those, and we just keep pushing forward down the field. It's all about honing in on what you got to and then at the end of the day, winning your one on one battle and keeping Tyler up in a critical situation."

(Photo of Keyjuan Brown: Clare Grant - Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK)

You can follow Louisville Cardinals On SI for future coverage by liking us on Facebook, Twitter/X and Instagram:

Facebook - @LouisvilleOnSI
Twitter/X - @LouisvilleOnSI
Instagram - @louisvilleonsi

You can also follow Deputy Editor Matthew McGavic at @Matt_McGavic on Twitter/X