Louisville at Cincinnati and ACC Championship Game Previews
No. 19 Louisville (10-1, 6-1 American) at Cincinnati (9-2, 6-1 American)
Cincinnati leads series 22-21-1 (Last meeting October 26, 2012: Louisville 34, Cincinnati 31)
Louisville travels to Cincinnati for the final regular season matchup of the season as the teams fight for conference bowl positioning. Both teams come in to the game riding high as the Bearcats have won six-straight games since falling at South Florida, while the Cardinals have won four in a row since losing to conference leader UCF. Cincinnati and Louisville occupy the top two spots in the conference in total offense, scoring defense, total defense and sacks. The Bearcats have won four of the last five games in the series, including two-straight at home.
Cincinnati QB Brendon Kay has performed well in place of injured QB Munchie Legaux. Kay ranks fourth in the conference in passing yards per game with 254.5, completing over 70% of his passes for 22 touchdowns. The Cardinals counter with star quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, who leads The American with 25 touchdown passes.
Cincinnati can claim a share of the American conference title with a win and a UCF loss on Saturday.
ACC Championship: No. 20 Duke (10-2, 6-2 ACC) at No. 1 Florida State (12-0, 8-0 ACC)
Florida State leads series 18-0 (Last meeting October 27, 2012: Florida State 48, Duke 7)
Duke has never beaten Florida State in football, but in a season in which they have won 10 games for the first time ever, only the Seminoles stand in the way of an ACC championship. Florida State is just one win away from a bigger prize, a spot in the BCS National Championship game. The Seminoles lead the nation in points allowed, surrendering only 11.0 points per game, while also ranking second in points scored, tallying 53.7 points per contest. FSU has won 11 of 12 games by 27 or more points, dominating the competition on way to a perfect regular season.
Duke started the season at 2-2 before rattling off eight-straight wins en route to its first appearance in the ACC championship game. Wide receiver Jamison Crowder leads the offense statistically, catching 88 passes for 1,131 yards and seven touchdowns. During Duke’s six-game ACC winning streak, the Blue Devils defeated two top-25 teams and won four road games.