ACC Championship Preview: No. 4 Florida State vs. No. 15 Louisville

Conference-championship week is finally upon us, which means an upcoming slate of games anticipated to be close and exciting with some having playoff implications.

The ACC Championship between the No. 4 Florida State Seminoles and the No. 15 Louisville Cardinals certainly holds playoff stakes for the Seminoles.

This is the first ACC Championship in program history for the Cardinals, while the Seminoles have been there six times, but not since nearly a decade ago back in 2014.

Florida State clearly doesn’t have the same punch without Jordan Travis under center, but coach Mike Norvell having the week to prepare quarterback Tate Rodemaker and the offense spells optimism for Seminoles fans.

Avoiding turnovers is crucial for Florida State, as Louisville is certainly strong and capable enough to fuel momentum from any mistakes by the Seminoles.

If Rodemaker can build off of last week against Florida, and be a game manager that leans on Trey Benson’s rushing attack, Florida State should prevail.

If the Seminoles’ offense happens to sour though, the defense has proved that it can step up.

Florida State gives up the 10th least passing yards per game in the FBS and is 20th in total yards given up.

The kryptonite for the Seminoles’ defensive unit is stopping the run, as they are 45th in the nation at 140.2 rushing yards surrendered per contest.

This is a key thing to focus on for the Cardinals who own a decent 183.5 rushing yards on average, which is the 33rd best mark in the country.

Jawhar Jordan has been having an incredible season pounding the rock with 1,076 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns.

If Louisville can ignite its backfield early on, it can certainly conduct the big plays needed to keep up with an undefeated team.

Jack Plummer is a respectable signal caller for the Cardinals, but he tends to turn the ball over at times with an interception in each of his last three games.

With Florida State’s tendency to efficiently defend the pass, Plummer may be dialed back a bit more than usual.

Then again though, coach Jeff Brohm and his squad know that a balanced attack will likely be needed to grasp the ACC crown.

He also knows that Benson will test Louisville’s superb rushing defense with the golden opportunity to take away a key piece of the Seminoles’ offensive potency.

The Cardinals are 11th in the country by only allowing 96.8 rushing yards per game.

Louisville’s red-zone defense is also superb by only allowing opponents to score 70.8% of the time when in the zone. This mark is tied for the third-best in the country.

The talented running game from each side paired with the uncertainty about how these quarterbacks will perform and which defense will step up more will make this game a must-watch.

Jake Irwin is a fourth-year student majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, please email jpi5089@psu.edu.