Louisville vs. Florida State Prediction: Can Cardinals Shock Tate Rodemaker, Seminoles in ACC Championship?
Florida State notched a solid win over Florida last week in their first game without Jordan Travis but now they have an even bigger task in front of them against a pissed off Louisville team coming off a bad loss to Kentucky. Who has the edge? Let's break it down.
Joey Ruiz - December 2, 2023, 1:00 PM EST
7 minLouisville vs. Florida State Prediction: Can Cardinals Shock Tate Rodemaker, Seminoles in ACC Championship?
Florida State escaped Florida last week in the first start of the season by backup quarterback, Tate Rodemaker, after Jordan Travis went down with a gruesome leg injury in the game prior against North Alabama. In that game, it was backup QB against backup QB as Graham Mertz was also out for Florida with an injury so it was a very tough game to handicap.
Louisville vs. Florida State Date, Start Time, and Where to Watch
- Date: December 2, 2023
- Game Time: 8:00 pm ET
- Where to Watch: ABC
Louisville vs. Florida State Prediction
In the game, FSU was actually trailing late in the fourth quarter before kicking a field goal with seven minutes to go to take the lead and they eventually scored a touchdown in the final minutes to put the game out of reach. The Noles however were only able to put up 224 yards of total offense which included 134 yards through the air and 90 yards on the ground against a very average Florida defensive unit.
The Noles have an even bigger task ahead of them this week against a Louisville defense who has been well above average for most of the season. Rodemaker was only able to complete 12 of 25 passes and notched 5.4 yards per attempt in what was very conservative play calling but how can you blame Florida State for that. They had just lost their starting QB and were playing with a backup against a Florida team that did not have much to play for which resulted in very conservative and 'safe' play calling for Florida State.
I would like to think they open the playbook up a bit more in this contest, but I am not sure they will have a ton of offensive success either way. This Louisville defense has been a solid unit all season and they are coming off a very below average performance against Kentucky in which they allowed 38 points but only 289 total yards in a final score that probably does not tell the whole story of that game. Kentucky returned a kick for a touchdown and the Wildcats were actually outgained by Louisville 403 to 289 but that kick return touchdown coupled with three Louisville turnovers left the door open for Kentucky and they took full advantage.
In the game following Louisville's one loss prior to Kentucky, they faced Duke and completely shut down the Blue Devils as they won 23-0 and only allowed a total of 202 yards as they notched a turnover and four sacks. Interesting enough, that game against Duke also came against a hobbled/hurt Riley Leonard and their backup also saw some action in that game as well. There is no comparing Duke to Florida State, but we have seen how the Louisville defense has performed against below average quarterback play and it was very impressive.
I foresee Florida State really struggling to move the ball on offense and think Louisville will lean on their well above average rushing attack to move the ball consistently to try and avoid turnover worthy plays through the air as their QB, Jack Plummer, has been shaky at times this season. With that being said, I am rolling with Louisville +2 at -104 for 1.5U as one of my Most Confident College Football Plays of the Day for tonight's action as I think the Cardinals get the best of Tate Rodemaker and this shorthanded Florida State squad.
Louisville vs. Florida State Pick
1.5U Louisville +2 -104 Click here to see which sportsbook has the best odds
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