Louisville football: Three keys to the Cards beating Notre Dame

Win the turnover battle

Not only does Louisville football have to hold the ball longer than Notre Dame, but the Cardinals need to just hold onto the ball, period.

Louisville is 3rd-to-last in the nation in turnover margin average, coughing it up two more times per game than its opponents.

Against Georgia Tech, Louisville’s three fumbles led to 19 points off turnovers- the exact margin of defeat for the Cardinals.

Notre Dame has a 0.0 +/- turnover margin. While the Irish average a turnover per, Louisville gives it up 2.8 times per game. Ball security has to be at a premium if you have any chance of springing an upset, but I’d even go as far as to say Louisville has to win the turnover battle by at least two to even have a shot in this one.

Given Notre Dame’s aptitude in the trenches, they are going to be able to dictate a lot of what happens up front. Why not be aggressive in the open field, take some chances, and try to get the Irish to cough it up?

Much of what made the Cardinals successful last season was their ability to hang onto the ball. Louisville has to get back to that this week, or the Cards will be in for a long day.