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Louisville at Memphis Football Predictions

Written by Jimmy Boyd

Louisville (2-2) heads to Memphis (3-3) to take on the Tigers under the Friday night lights on ESPN in a non-conference battle between the Big East and Conference USA. Not surprisingly, the BCS conference team, Louisville, is a 7-point favorite for the contest.

Memphis beat UAB last week to secure its third straight win to get back to the .500 mark for the season. The Tigers drove 72 yards on nine plays to put place kicker Vinny Zaccario in field goal range and he delivered with a 25-yard kick to seal the victory.

The Tigers have clawed their way back by pounding the football. Memphis is averaging 233 yards per game on the ground during its three-game winning streak. Curtis Steele has been the go-to guy, topping 100 yards in all three of those games.

The offense has been solid, averaging 29 points per contest, but the defense has really let the Tigers down. Ole Miss scored 41 against them, Rice went for 42, and UAB went for 30 last week. Poor tackling is allowing opponents to get too many yards after contact. They allowed 455 yards to UAB last week.

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So it appears that Memphis is going to have to win with its offense. Keep an eye on QB Arkelon Hall who just had a standout game, throwing for 209 yards and four touchdowns. If the running game continues to hold strong, Hall is going to get a lot of opportunities to make plays. And Hall has the benefit of throwing to the 6-8 Carlos Singleton, who had 123 yards and five grabs last week. If you think the Tigers can pull off the upset, bet Memphis at +7 at Bookmaker.

The Cardinals enter this matchup having had an extra week to regroup following a heartbreaking 26-21 loss to Connecticut on September 26. The extra time should especially benefit QB Hunter Cantwell who was noticeably limping in Louisville’s last game.

The Cards have already shown glimpses of brilliance on offense this season along with glimpses of disaster. Hopefully the extra time will allow Cantwell and the offense to gain some more cohesiveness. If Cantwell can’t go or his ankle injury worsens in the game, we will see backup Tyler Wolfe.

There’s no doubt that Louisville has some talented playmakers. Wide receiver Doug Beaumont is one of them. He’s settled into the No. 1 receiver roll and now the Cards will get fellow wide out Scott Lang back just in time for Memphis. Hopefully we will see the same running attack that torched K-State back in mid-September. The problem has been taking care of the football.

The defense has actually outshined the offense thus far, playing much more consistent football than the offense. The Cards will no doubt need another strong defensive effort this week if the offense decides not to show. Even in losses to Kentucky and UConn, the defense made big plays to give Louisville a chance.

Another key could be the performance of the kicking game if this one ends up close. Just how bad is the Louisville kicking game you ask? The coaching staff showed no confidence in either Tim Dougherty or Chris Philpott by going for it on fourth down three times inside the 30 yard line against Connecticut. Louisville only has two field goals this season. For the sake of the Cards, hopefully one of these two can emerge as a reliable weapon prior to Big East play. If you think the Cardinals can regroup off a bye week and cover the spread in the process, bet Louisville at -7 at Bookmaker.

Our college football betting odds will keep you up to date on all the line moves this week and our college football picks will keep you beating the odds.

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