Louisville Football: Two locks and two bold predictions for Alabama

Louisville football takes the field against Alabama as massive underdogs. We preview the match-up and give you two bold predictions and two locks.

Louisville football season is finally upon us! The wait is finally over, and your Louisville Cardinals are ready to take the field against the defending national champion Alabama Crimson Tide.

We have given you most of our thoughts on the season, and talked more Alabama football than Paul Finebaum. But now, it’s time to get down to the nitty gritty and give you some predictions for the Cards’s season opener.

The BRL staffers are almost at a consensus that the Tide will just be too much for the Cards to handle in the end. However, even in a loss against Bama, Louisville can still take away a lot, move forward, and have a successful season.

Here are two locks and two bold predictions to look out for when the Cards take the field on Saturday.

Locks

Presley: Louisville will out-gain Bama through the air.

This has been one of the biggest story lines heading into the game, but I think with good reason. The Cards are the best and deepest they have ever been at receiver. There are 10-15 guys who have a legitimate argument to see playing time, and the starters- Jaylen Smith, Seth Dawkins, and Dez Fitzpatrick- will all play on Sundays.

Alabama has a ton of talent in their secondary, but it is all unproven. They bring in four new starters who Louisville seems more than confident that they can beat one-on-one.

On the flip side of things, Alabama has a stellar offensive line and even better running backs. Damien Harris will likely see the most touches, and his counterpart Najee Harris looks to be almost at 100%. They bring in a slew of talent in the backfield, and a number of guys are likely to see touches.

Louisville’s secondary looks to be the strength of its defense, and Alabama is unlikely to throw it a ton unless they get down by a couple of scores. Quarterback Jalen Hurts is a game-management type of guy who is not going to take many risks, and it seems less than likely that Tua Tagovialoa is going to get to utilize the full playbook if his name is called.

Jacob: Louisville will allow fewer than 3 sacks

We’ve talked ad nauseam about how good this Louisville offensive line has the chance to be this season. What better way to prove than go out and dominate Alabama’s NFL-like defensive front.

The biggest key to this game on offense to me is keeping Jawon “Puma” Pass upright. Alabama’s defensive line features two 2019 NFL draft first rounders in Raekwon Davis and Isaiah Buggs, and there’s no doubt about it, their impact on a game is monstrous. However, with Mekhi Becton, a future first rounder himself, Cole Bentley, Lukayus McNeil, Kenny Thomas, and Linwood Foy upfront, this Cards team has the ability to hold them to minimal impact.

The way I see it, Lukayus McNeil’s comments this week are accurate and will be spoken into existence tomorrow when the Tide and Cardinals take the field.

More from Louisville Cardinals News

Though I think Alabama’s defense will shut down the Louisville ground game, Puma Pass will likely pass for 250ish yards, and throw 2+ touchdowns.

Bold Predictions

Presley: Micky Crum will have the game we have all been waiting for.

Plagued by injuries and confined to the bench by talented depth in front of him, redshirt senior Micky Crum has never really gotten the chance to prove himself for the Cards.

Now is his chance.

Yes, Louisville has behemoth Kemari Averrett and talented junior transfer Jordan Davis in the fold, but there is just something about Crum’s game that I think he will step up on the big stage.

Crum had an extremely promising redshirt freshman season, where he recorded three touchdowns, 163 yards, and impressed with some crushing blocks.

Crum has a huge opportunity, particularly in the opener. With the loss of tailback Tobias Little, Louisville will need someone to fill in. Running Back Jeremy Smith returned to the fold seemingly out of nowhere this week, but he will not be able to see action against Bama since he hasn’t practiced for a full week.

This leaves Crum as one of the only ideal tailback options for the Cards. Getting Crum on the field will only be good for Louisville, and I think he will contribute in a number of ways vs. the Tide.

Jacob: Javian Hawkins or Hassan Hall break a big touchdown run

Another thing we’ve heard about all summer long is the new found speed of the Louisville Cardinals. Freshman running back’s Hassan Hall and Javian Hawkins specifically have been referenced multiple times by Bobby Petrino as guys to watch this season, but at the same time there’s been preaching of tempered expectations.

In order to see the field as a running back you have to be able to do two key things for Petrino. One, know the playbook. Two years ago Petrino spent an entire fall camp praising then junior transfer Malik Williams and his performance in practice. But when the Cards took the field, Williams never got the chance to show the fans what the coaches had seen. The biggest reason we’d come to find out was that he wasn’t in shape and he didn’t know the plays. The second thing that has be done is picking up blitzers and protecting the quarterback at a high level. Throwing a freshman running back onto the field who doesn’t know how to read the field and pick up the extra blitzer are just as big of an enemy to the QB as the opposing defense.

Petrino has said the same thing this fall about Hassan Hall and Javian Hawkins. Both guys are electric, big time playmakers, but neither are ready to protect the QB at an elite, Alabama level.

But.. don’t let that fool you. The interior defensive dominance of Alabama will keep Trey Smith, and Dae Williams from being able to get consistent run plays going up the middle, forcing Petrino’s hand.

Sometime in the late first quarter or early second, one of the speedy freshman backs will get a chance and they won’t look back.

The Cards and the Tide will kick off in just a little over 24 hours on ABC in front of a prime time audience. Will either of our locks or bold predictions come true? We’ll find out when you do!