Louisville vs. Georgia Tech, Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN) at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta
Line: Louisville by 7½, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
Series record: Georgia Tech leads 2-0.
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WHAT’S AT STAKE?
Each program is looking to win its ACC opener under a new coach, each at his alma mater. Brent Key begins his first full season as Georgia Tech’s coach after posting a 4-4 record as the interim last season. Jeff Brohm, the former Louisville quarterback and former coach at Western Kentucky and Purdue, takes over a Cardinals team that won eight games last season and received votes in the preseason AP Top 25.
KEY MATCHUP
There is a homecoming angle to the matchup of Louisville WR Jamari Thrash against Georgia Tech CB Myles Sims. Thrash is a transfer from Georgia State in downtown Atlanta. He was a first-team All-Sun Belt selection in 2022 after catching 61 passes for 1,233 yards and seven touchdowns and closing the season with three straight 100-yard games. Sims had 43 tackles and an interception last season and should have help from safety LaMiles Brooks, who led the Yellow Jackets with three interceptions as a sophomore.
TRENDING STORIES:
STORY 1
STORY 2
STORY 3
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Louisville: QB Jack Plummer, a starter at California last season, follows Malik Cunningham’s four-year run guiding the Cardinals’ attack. Plummer threw for 3,095 yards with 21 touchdowns in 2022 following 13 starts over the final three seasons of his four years at Purdue with Brohm.
Georgia Tech: QB Haynes King, a graduate transfer from Texas A&M, will make his Georgia Tech debut after beating out Zach Pyron and Zach Gibson. King threw for 1,579 yards and 10 touchdowns over 10 games, including seven starts, for the Aggies from 2020-22. A broken leg ended his 2021 season after only two games. He threw for seven touchdowns with six interceptions while completing 55.6% of his passes for 1,220 yards last season.
FACTS & FIGURES
The Yellow Jackets beat the Cardinals 46-27 in the last meeting in 2020. The teams will become annual opponents in the ACC’s new scheduling format. ... Louisville has lost four of its last five season openers on the road, including last year’s 31-7 opener at Syracuse. ... Brohm was Louisville’s quarterback from 2004-07 and still ranks second in the school records for passing yards and attempts, third in completions and fourth in touchdown passes. ... Georgia Tech is 1-2 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium and is in the third year of a six-year agreement to play one game per season at the facility less than one mile from its campus.
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AP collegefootball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll
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