Kentucky, Louisville get heated during warm ups, have to be separated

It wouldn’t be the Governor’s Cup without some pregame antics, would it?

The Kentucky and Louisville football teams had to be separated during pregame warmups after both squads met at midfield, though there wasn’t much physicality. Both teams’ coaches were in the middle attempting to create space between the two rosters.

Aside from the coaching staff, Louisville quarterback Jack Plummer can be seen in the video pulling his teammates away from the Wildcats as they threw the patented L’s down toward their rival.

Some Ls Down going around as the two teams chirp near midfield 90 minutes before kickoff in the Governor’s Cup. pic.twitter.com/s895Nv2zZD

— Nick Roush (@RoushKSR) November 25, 2023

Kickoff between Kentucky and Louisville is set for Noon ET live on ABC.

More on Kentucky-Louisville rivalry

Under Mark Stoops, Kentucky hasn’t lost to Louisville since 2017, claiming five of the last six victories.

2023 is a different story, however. The Jeff Brohm era has Louisville ranked inside the top 10 in the latest College Football Playoffs rankings, and have every intention of disposing of their in-state rival en route to their ACC Championship showdown against Florida State.

Wildcats head coach Mark Stoops would be remiss if he thinks UK can walk into Cardinal Stadium and beat them 52-21 like they did last time (2021), or 56-10 the time before that (2019). And while a victory won’t undo the damage that has already been done to Kentucky throughout the season — it sure would be a feel-good way to end the regular season and improve their bowl projection.

For Louisville, a loss would bring heartache and devastation, as it would completely eliminate the Cardinals from the College Football Playoff ahead of next week’s ACC Championship game vs. Florida State.

What could make or break the game on both sides is Kentucky’s success on deep throws.

Kentucky quarterback Devin Leary has struggled will the deep ball, and consistency in general down the stretch this season. He went 17 of 34 passing for a touchdown and an interception in last week’s 17-14 loss to South Carolina. A similar performance could give Louisville the advantage it needs to overcome its bitter rival for the first time in five tries.

Explosive plays have been lacking in Lexington for much of the season, but are necessary if they want to knock off their top-10 ranked rivals on their home turf. For Louisville, that also means attempting to contain Ray Davis, who has been a force out of the backfield for Kentucky this season.

The Wildcats will head to Louisville as 7.5-point underdogs, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. The over/under line is set at 50.5 total points.