One year ago, Virginia took a 4-1 record into a game with Louisville, lost to the Cardinals, and spiraled to a 5-7 finish.The newly ranked Cavaliers (4-1, 2-0 in ACC), at No. 24 in the AP Top 25, have a chance to write a different ending starting Saturday afternoon when they visit Louisville (4-0, 1-0) for an Atlantic Coast Conference showdown.Louisville has won the last three meetings in the series. The Cardinals initiated Virginia’s collapse last season by rallying for a 24-20 win on Oct. 12 in Charlottesville, Va. Tyler Shough threw the game-winning touchdown pass with 1:55 left.Much has changed in a year. Shough is now a rookie with the New Orleans Saints, and the Cavaliers are in the poll for the first time since 2019 after upsetting then-No. 8 Florida State 46-38 in double overtime last Friday.Not as battle-tested, Louisville has an opportunity to secure its first signature win of the season. It completed a perfect September with home wins over Eastern Kentucky, James Madison and Bowling Green, plus a come-from-behind 34-27 victory last Saturday at Pitt to open ACC play.The Cardinals will have to contend with a Virginia offense that ranks fifth in the nation with an average of 539.6 yards per game and eighth in scoring with 45.6 points per game. Virginia needs only 45 points to surpass last season’s total output of 272 points (12 games).”They are playing very good as a team. I mean extremely well,” Louisville coach Jeff Brohm said. “Very efficient, not hurting themselves, making a lot of really big plays on both sides of the ball. Right now, they’re a dangerous team.”The balanced Cavaliers are averaging nearly 300 passing yards per game behind quarterback Chandler Morris and also rank second in the ACC with 243.4 rushing yards per game. J’Mari Taylor and Harrison Waylee have combined for 626 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns.Brohm has concerns with his own ground game, which managed just 53 yards on 34 attempts in the victory against the Panthers.
