Louisville Football: Win Over Wake, Ripples in AP Top 25

Louisville’s Win Over Wake Forest

LOUISVILLE, KY–Louisville’s win over Wake Forest this past weekend was one of the games in college football that helped create a seismic shift in the AP Top 25. The Demon Deacons dropped from 10 overall to 20 overall, Kentucky fell out of the Top 25, Syracuse dropped from 16 to 22, and UCF went from unranked to number 25.

For Louisville, the Cardinals were given more of a chance to win by the Sportsbooks, as a mere three point underdog, than College Gameday. Host Rece Davis went around the table and asked fellow hosts Desmond Howard, Pat McAfee, David Pollack, and Kirk Herbstreit if Louisville had a chance. Nobody picked Louisville to win and as a result, Card Nation is captioning it on Twitter.

However, Pat McAfee, who joined College Gameday this season, was man enough to admit he was wrong. Their judgement of the football program here at Louisville was based on the limited sample size they have seen this year on the field. Getting blown out by Syracuse, losing a close one to Florida State, and suffering defeat at the hands of a Boston College team who should have never been in that game.

From an outsider’s perspective, it would make sense that this team would not stand a chance against a Top 10 team with only five turnovers through 7 games. However, the history of Louisville vs. Wake Forest is a unique one in the sense that the number in front of the school name doesn’t matter when these two teams play.

Since January 2007, the Cardinals and the Demon Deacons have played each other 10 total times, with Louisville winning seven of them, specifically three out of the last four. Whether in WInston-Salem, North Carolina or Louisville, Kentucky, when the Demon Deacons and Cardinals play each other, it always ends up in pure chaos.

Ripple Effects in AP Top 25

With UCF entering into the Top 25, Louisville is one of six schools in the nation who have two or more wins over Top 25 teams this season.

Louisville defeated Central Florida in September of this year with a 20-14 victory. Adding that to their resume of the win over Wake Forest, Louisville did receive one vote for a poll position. So shout-out to whoever that person is.

The remaining schedule for the Cardinals includes two teams who have fallen out of the Top 25 and two teams who are currently in the Top 25. This coming weekend is the matchup against James Madison. JMU is a team that is currently in a transition from FCS to FBS football and Louisville is arguably their most high profile opponent this season.

So the Dukes are going to give Louisville everything they have. A few weeks ago, this matchup would have been more daunting. Now Scott Satterfield and company are on a three game winning streak with a hungry defense that is finding chemistry on the field.

Kentucky just suffered a brutal loss to Tennessee this past weekend. A highly touted NFL prospect, Kentucky quarterback Will Levis could not get into rhythm against the Volunteers. Tennessee quarterback and Heisman candidate Hendon Hooker led the Volunteers to a convincing 44-6 win.

ACC Champion favorite Clemson has been stagnant at number 5 overall for the past couple of weeks. The Tigers took Wake Forest to double overtime and narrowly escaped with a win at the beginning of October. Last week they only beat Syracuse by six points and the Orange defense held quarterback DJ Uiagalelei  to under 200 yards passing for the first time this season. So this Clemson team does not seem unbeatable, even though their record shows otherwise.

North Carolina State is currently without their NFL prospect quarterback Devin Leary and yet they remain in the Top 25. Their only losses are to Syracuse and Clemson. But they are set to take on Wake Forest next week. #20 Wake Forest vs. #21 NC State will be a must watch game for Louisville fans because if NC State loses and Louisville wins against James Madison, then both teams would be 6-3.