Louisville Outlasts Miami to Clinch Berth in ACC Championship Game

The Cardinals' comeback victory over the Canes sends them to their first conference title game since joining the ACC.

MIAMI - Traveling to South Florida for their final conference matchup and true road game of the 2023 season, the Louisville football program earned a monumental victory against Miami, securing a 38-31 win Saturday at Hard Rock Stadium.

With the win, the No. 9/10 Cardinals (10-1, 7-1 ACC) have officially clinched a berth in the 2023 ACC Championship Game. It is their first appearance since joining the conference in 2014, as well as their first ever appearance in a conference championship game.

Louisville will fight No. 4 Florida State for the ACC title. Kickoff is slated for Saturday, Dec. 2 at 8:00 p.m. from Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C.

Additionally, the victory marked Louisville's first time capturing double-digit wins in a single season since 2013, and just their seventh time in program history. It also was Louisville's first ever road win against Miami, as they had previously been 0-6-1 against the Hurricanes (6-5, 2-5 ACC) on the road.

Entering the fourth quarter trailing by five, Louisville out-scored Miami 15-3 to pull off yet another late-game come-from-behind victory. 

On their first drive of the fourth quarter, the Cardinals orchestrated a methodical drive to get to the goal line. Backup quarterback Evan Conley punched it in from five yards out on a wildcat keeper, then starting quarterback Jack Plummer connected with Jamari Thrash for a two-point conversion.

The Hurricanes responded with a 51-yard, game-tying field goal with 5:34 left, but Louisville was quick to retake the lead. Just three plays later, wide receiver Kevin Coleman Jr. took a short pass from Plummer, and ran all the way up the right sideline for a 58-yard go ahead score.

Miami still wasn't going to go down easy, as the Canes were able to get all the way down to the four-yard line with roughly two minutes to go. But the Louisville defense stood firm, turning away the home team on four straight plays to force a turnover on downs and seal the victory.

While Louisville's offense found themselves leaving a lot to be desired in the matchup, they still finished with 470 yards for the game and 162 rushing. Plummer went 24-for-37 for 308 yards, three touchdowns and an interception, while reserve running back Isaac Guerendo tallied 15 carries for 93 yards and a score.

By game's end, 12 different players for Louisville caught a pass, with four finishing with over 50 receiving yards. Tight end Nate Kurisky had a career day with five catches for 50 yards, wide receiver Chris Bell had four for 58, tight end Joey Gatewood logged three for 51, and Coleman had two for 58.

Louisville's defense, which had been their calling card in the second half of the season, struggled for most of the afternoon against Miami. They surrendered 486 yards of offense and 159 on the ground, both of which were second-most on the season behind 488 and 175, respectively, given up to Georgia Tech in their season-opener.

Canes QB Tyler Van Dyke, who had been shaky over the last month, re-found his poise. He went 24-for-39 for 327 yards and a touchdown to wide receiver Xavier Restrepo. Restrepo finished with 193 yards and a score on eight catches, while running back Mark Fletcher Jr. had 17 carries for 126 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Safety Devin Neal led Louisville's defense with eight tackles, defensive end Mason Reiger tallied the only sack on the afternoon as well as 1.5 tackles for loss, while safety Cam'Ron Kelly also finished with 1.5 tackles for loss.

The two offenses got off to good starts in this matchup, as each team scored on two of their three drives in the first quarter. Louisville cracked the scoreboard first, with Kurisky hauling a two-yard touchdown from Plummer on the Cardinals' first time out. Miami was quick to respond, as they immediately countered with a quick drive that saw Fletcher run it into the end zone from 21 yards out.

Following a Plummer interception by Kamren Kinchens on the next drive, the Canes turned that into another touchdown, with Van Dyke finding Restrepo for a 15-yard score. Louisville then pulled out a counter of their own, with Guerendo rushing for a 12-yard touchdown on a drive that was heavily assisted by a 50-yard kickoff return by Maurice Turner.

Both teams traded three-and-outs to kick off the second quarter, but then Miami pulled back in front, using a methodical drive that was capped off by 34-yard reverse that put Brashard Smith in the end zone.

Louisville then got two final chances before the half to score the equalizer. Their first chance saw a methodical drive stall out in the red zone, but it ended with no points after Brock Travelstead missed a 24-yard chip shot field goal.

The Cardinals' defense then gave the offense another try with just over two minutes to go after forcing a three-and-out, and this try was successful. Offensive lineman/tight end hybrid Trevonte Sylvester caught a one-yard touchdown with just eight seconds to go, but Travelstead's point-after attempt would get blocked, giving the Canes the slight 21-20 edge at halftime.

Louisville re-took the lead on a 40-yard field goal from Nick Lopez - who replaced Travelstead - on their first drive of the half, but struggled to get much going in the rest of the third quarter, going three-and-out on their next two drives.

Miami also had two punts and a scoring drive in the third quarter, but their score saw them reach the endzone. Fletcher punched it in from a yard out after gashing the Cardinals' defense for a 54-yard run to set up the go-ahead score, as well as the comeback fourth quarter.

Next up, Louisville will return home for a showdown with in-state rival Kentucky in their regular season finale on Saturday, Nov. 25. Time and television designation have yet to be announced.

(Photo of Nate Kurisky: Sam Navarro - USA TODAY Sports)

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