NC State football opponent scouting report: Louisville

The NC State football team, ranked No. 24 in the updated edition of the College Football Playoff poll, is back in action Saturday afternoon and on the road for the first time since losing at Syracuse on Oct. 15. The destination is Louisville, who had a four-game winning streak snapped last Saturday at Clemson.

NC State is 7-3 overall and 3-3 in the ACC, while the Cards are 6-4 and 3-4.

Kickoff is at 3:30 p.m., and the game can be seen on RSN.

Here is a full scouting report on Louisville:

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Five Louisville Players To Watch

Senior linebacker Yasir Abdullah (No. 22)

Ball security will be a premium for NC State when Abdullah is making a tackle. He has an ACC-high 4 forced fumbles on the season, giving him 8 for his career. That is tied for fourth-most in school history.

The disruptive linebacker has amassed in his career 19.5 sacks and 38.5 tackles for loss, and the latter ranks fourth most at Louisville. This season, Abdullah is second on the team in tackles (46), tackles for loss (10.5) and sacks (5.5). He also is tied for squad-high 2 picks and leads the defense with 4 pass breakups.

Senior quarterback Malik Cunningham (No. 3)

The athletic signal-caller is questionable for Saturday’s game after injuring his throwing shoulder at the end of the first half at Clemson and not returning after halftime.

If he plays, Cunningham is a dynamic dual-threat quarterback. Only former Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson and Chris Redman have more games with 300 total yards of offense in school history than Cunningham’s 17.

His 3,180 rushing yards and 49 scores are third and second most, respectively, in school history, with the TD total just one behind Jackson’s record.

Cunningham is also fourth all-time at Louisville in passing yards (9,648) and fifth in scoring tosses (71).

Senior receiver Tyler Hudson (No. 0)

The transfer from Central Arkansas has four 100-yard receiving games this year, including catching 11 passes for 163 yards last Saturday at Clemson. That was the most receptions in a game by a Louisville player in over 15 years.

For the season, Hudson has 57 catches for 866 yards, the latter figure being second-most in the ACC. He has been Louisville’s leader in catches and receiving yards for six straight games entering the NC State contest.

Junior running back Tiyon Evans (No. 7)

In 7 games, Evans has rushed 81 times for 523 yards, a team-high 6.5 yards per rush, and 6 touchdowns. The 5-foot-11, 213-pounder leads UL in rushing among running backs despite missing 3 contests.

The former Tennessee transfer ran for over 100 yards in wins over Wake Forest and James Madison in back-to-back weeks.

Super senior linebacker Momo Sanogo (No. 1)

The Ole Miss transfer leads Louisville in tackles with 74, a tally that includes 8.5 hits for loss and 3.5 sacks. He has also recovered 3 fumbles.

He has been playing his best football lately, registering back-to-back double-digit tackle performances and having 36 hits (including 4 for loss and 2 sacks) over the past three games entering Saturday’s contest against NC State.

What To Watch For From Louisville Against NC State Football

1. A strong rushing attack, especially if Cunningham plays. The Cards are 27th nationally in rushing yards per game at 197.0, and sophomore running back Jawhar Jordan is just 50 yards away from giving Louisville three players with at least 500 yards rushing for the season.

In half of Louisville’s games, the Cards have gone over 200 yards rushing. Only twice this year has Louisville rushed for fewer yards in a game than the opponent typically allows per contest.

NC State is ninth nationally in yards allowed on the ground at 92.3 per game. But James Madison is second at 79.0, and Louisville ran for 244 yards on the Dukes. Pitt is 10th nationally at 97.7 yards, and UL had 122 yards on them.

The wildcard is Cunningham’s health. If he cannot play, backup quarterback junior Brock Domann is not nearly the same threat running the football.

2. A very aggressive, disruptive defense. NC State offensive coordinator Tim Beck noted that the tight ends and running backs will have to be involved in pass protection.

Louisville is second in the country in sacks per game at 3.6, tied for 11th in tackles for loss at 7.5, tied for sixth in interceptions with 14, tied for first in fumbles forced with 15 and second in turnovers gained with 27.

3. An oft-penalized team. No team in the ACC has piled up more penalty yards this year than Louisville, which is tied for 123rd among 131 Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) members with 71.6 penalty yards per game.

Three Keys To The Game For NC State Football

1. Win the turnover margin. In the six wins for Louisville, the Cards are plus-12 in turnover margin. Only once, in a 34-10 victory over James Madison, has UL lost the turnover margin and still won the contest. In the 4 losses for the Cards, they are minus-1.

NC State has been fairly good at protecting the football, tied for 34th nationally in turnovers lost with 12, but the Pack is coming off a game where NC State had 4 in a loss to Boston College.

In games where NC State had multiple turnovers, the Pack is 1-2, with the one victory being at East Carolina when the Pirates missed an extra point and a field goal late in the fourth quarter during a narrow 21-20 NC State win.

2. Contain the run (and Malik Cunningham if he plays). The outlook for this game changes dramatically if Cunningham is not available, but regardless in the one game Cunningham missed at Virginia the Cards still managed to rush for 198 yards and 4.3 yards per rush. Virginia averages allowing 153.2 rushing yards per game and 3.8 yards per rush.

The quarterback run game has been an issue at times for the NC State defense this year, and Cunningham would be the best running signal-caller the Pack has faced.

3. Score touchdowns in the red zone. The second half vs. Boston College showed that the offensive struggles are still there for NC State. Against an aggressive Louisville defense, moving the football could be a challenge. Thus, when NC State reaches the red zone, the Pack needs to score touchdowns.

That will not be easy. Louisville is tied for 21st in allowing just half of red zone trips by opponents to result in touchdowns. NC State is tied for 111th in the nation in scoring TDs on just 51.35 percent of red zone trips.

Three Numbers Of Note For NC State Football Vs. Louisville

4 — Points favored for Louisville

1 — Wins in Louisville for NC State football in 5 tries

12 — Consecutive weeks ranked in the CFP poll for NC State, fourth-longest streak in the country