Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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GAME PREVIEW: LOUISVILLE for his comprehension of the defense, but he still relies on sophomore linebacker Jaylon Smith (67 tackles through nine games) and junior defensive lineman Sheldon Day (36 stops) to help him direct the defense. Advantage: Louisville LOUISVILLE PASSING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME PASS DEFENSE Louisville lost starting redshirt sophomore quar‑ terback Will Gardner for the season after he suf‑ fered an ACL injury in his left knee against Bos‑ ton College Nov. 8. Gardner also hurt his knee in September and missed two‑plus games before reclaiming the starting job from freshman Reggie Bonnafon. In seven games played, including three starts, Bonnafon has completed 51 of 92 passes for 662 yards with four touchdowns and one in‑ terception. The Cardinals struggled implementing head coach Bobby Petrino's offensive attack at the start of the season, but were rounding into form under Gard‑ ner in recent weeks, gaining 330 and 257 aerial yards against Florida State and Boston College, respectively. Senior wide receiver DeVante Parker led Louisville in receiving yards each of the last two years, but a broken bone in his left foot suffered in August temporarily derailed his 2014 campaign. Parker has played in only four games this season, but quickly racked up 490 receiving yards. That total leads the team, while his 25 interceptions rank fourth. Parker's 122.5 yards per game would rank him third in the country if he had played the entire season. Notre Dame has relied on a staunch secondary this season, but a lingering foot injury to fifth‑year senior cornerback Cody Riggs has weakened the de‑ fensive backfield. Sophomores Cole Luke and Devin Butler have played admirably this season, but the Irish will hope to have Riggs at full‑strength to slow down Parker, no matter who is throwing to him. Advantage: Even NOTRE DAME RUNNING GAME VS. LOUISVILLE RUN DEFENSE Arizona State proved the best way to slow Notre Dame's run game is to blitz the pass game. Sopho‑ more running back Tarean Folston has shown himself to be the best rusher — leading the Irish with 112 rushes for 575 yards and three touchdowns through nine games — but his ineffective pass blocking often leads to extra time on the sideline. Against the Sun Devils, senior Cam McDaniel played the entire sec‑ ond half, rushing for 26 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries while providing solid pass protection. Notre Dame averaged 155.1 rushing yards per game through the season's first nine contests. Se‑ nior quarterback Everett Golson leads the Irish with seven rushing touchdowns. Louisville lost three defensive line starters this season, including end Marcus Smith, and boasts a relatively inexperienced linebacker corps, but has not missed a beat in 2014. Through 10 weeks, the Cardinals ranked second in the nation in rushing defense (87.4 yards allowed per game) and had sur‑ rendered just six rushing touchdowns, while amass‑ ing 70 tackles for loss. Senior linebacker/end Lorenzo Mauldin has led the way with 12 tackles for loss (6.5 sacks) among 39 total stops. Advantage: Even NOTRE DAME PASSING GAME VS. LOUISVILLE PASS DEFENSE Notre Dame boasts the country's 16th‑ranked passing offense through nine games, producing 306.3 yards per game. Sophomore wide receiver Will Fuller continues to fly under national radar despite his 52 catches for 694 yards and 10 touchdowns in nine games. Sophomore wide receiver Corey Robin‑ son comes in next for the Irish in all those categories with 32 catches for 450 yards and four scores. Golson would be the subject of much awards‑ hype if he could avoid turning over the ball. He had thrown for 2,757 yards and 24 touchdowns through nine games, completing 61.7 percent of his passes.