Although No. 16 Louisville has been anchored by its defense all season, coach Jeff Brohm is hoping that unit can get off to a better start this Saturday when his team faces Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va.
That defense ranks second in the conference and 14th nationally by giving up just 286.3 yards per game. However, opponents have been able to put points on the board early against the Cardinals (6-1, 3-1 ACC), with 44 of the 150 points allowed coming in the first quarter.
Boston College scored 10 points on its first two drives last week and led by three before the Cardinals scored two touchdowns in the final two minutes of the second quarter en route to a 38-24 victory. The Eagles’ success on those early drives was a key reason Louisville’s defense was on the field for nearly 24 minutes in the first half.
Brohm told reporters Monday he thought the defense was “a little more vanilla” than it had been at the start of other games. That allowed the Eagles to move the chains.
“After those first two drives, the ability to get off the field on third down increased and went way higher,” he said. “So I thought we improved as the game went on, but yes, we need to start better.”
Both the Cardinals and the Hokies (3-5, 2-2) are coming off their best offensive ground games of the season. Paced by Isaac Brown’s 205 yards on 14 carries, Louisville needed just 31 attempts to garner 317 yards while the Hokies had a pair of 100-yard rushers as they racked up 357 yards in their 42-34 double-overtime home win over Cal last Friday.
Running back Marcellous Hawkins (21 carries, 167 yards) and quarterback Kyron Drones (21, 137) each reached 100 yards rushing for the first time this season, with the latter scoring twice.
“Both of them did a really nice job, after contact, of picking up yards, too,” interim coach Philip Montgomery said Tuesday. “Ran very physically, did a great job with their vision, and when they had an opportunity for an explosive run, they hit them.”
The Hokies’ running game averages 184.3 yards per game, fourth-best in the conference, but it leads the league with an average of 231 in four ACC games. Louisville’s rushing defense also is fourth-best in the conference, yielding just 105.3 yards per game, and in conference games only, that average drops to 86.8.
Brown ranks second among ACC backs, averaging 93.1 yards per game, and that’s even with him being limited in three games with a lower leg injury. His 8.7 yards-per-carry average leads all eligible players, and that’s due to his big-play capabilities. In a season and a half with Louisville, 48 of Brown’s 240 carries have resulted in a gain of 10 or more yards. The Cardinals are also 8-1 when he records 100 yards in a game.
Saturday marks the first time the Cardinals have made the trek to face the Hokies since joining the conference 11 years ago. They will venture into a stadium where they’ve never won. Louisville is 0-3 in Blacksburg, with the last game there a 41-13 loss in 1991.
