CFB Week 12 Friday
- Kyle Kirms
- 20 hours ago
- 3 min read
CLEMSON @ LOUISVILLE - 7:30 PM
So Louisville got punched in the mouth last week. They were chilling with 1 conference loss... CFB Playoff was on the table... ACC Championship was on the table. Not that they're mathematically eliminated from any of that... but a home loss to Cal? This hurts.
If Louisville can't handle Sagapolutele and Jacob De Jesus... how are they gonna handle Cade Klubnik and Antonio Williams?
That being said... I really am not hitting the panic button on Louisville's defense. This defense has been so good this year... I'm not gonna let one shaky performance erase everything they've done. BTW... the defense wasn't even that bad in the game.
So do we think Louisville's defense can stop Clemson's offense? Judging by the season long numbers, you'd think yes.
I think the answer is yes... For a moment there, we kinda thought Clemson's offense was back... but they really didn't play well against Florida State. That game was at home... now they're going on the road to play an even better defense in Louisville. Cade Klubnik also isn't 100%. I read he missed the entire week of practice. Sprained ankle > came back > bruised quad in the Duke game and could hardly walk.
Louisville has one of the best pass rushes in the country... Klubnik has handled pressure well this year but if he's not 100%, this could be a really tough matchup for him. I'm also not sure if the run will be there.
On the other side of the ball, this is where the advantage swings heavily towards Clemson... because this Louisville offense just doesn't work without Isaac Brown.
Florida State has had their problems this year... but the offense has been pretty efficient... they've actually been one of the most efficient offenses in the country. Clemson completely shut this unit down.
Florida State's offense is much better than Louisville's... Miller Moss just hasn't played very well. Louisville's offensive success has come from explosive plays from their star RBs... Isaac Brown might be out for the season and Duke Watson is not 100%.
Despite what Clemson has gone through this year... the defense hasn't quit. They've played 3 games in a row against the best offenses in the ACC.
I'm on Clemson +3.5... but I gotta say that I don't love the matchup for the offense. I'd probably go under right now.
MINNESOTA @ OREGON - 9 PM
I'm not sure how Minnesota scores points in this game. RB Darius Taylor is questionable (even after the bye week).
We've seen Minnesota's offense struggle all season. But it gets even worse when you look at their numbers on the road. This team hasn't won a road game all year... 0-3.
Nobody's moved the ball on Oregon's defense all year. Even the game they lost to Indiana was a solid defensive performance.
On the other side of the ball, there might be a path to Minnesota slowing down Oregon's run game... but idk about that.
We just saw Oregon go into Kinnick and run the ball on Iowa in nasty weather... I don't think Minnesota's defensive front should stop em.
But even if you like Minnesota's defensive front to put up a fight... how are they stopping Oregon from throwing the ball? The weakness of this Minnesota defense is the secondary. CB Za'Quan Bryan got injured during warmups last game and didn't play against Michigan State. Aidan Chiles cooked them up. This is already a secondary that has key injuries from earlier in the season.
I guess you could say it's a look-ahead for Oregon. Two huge games on deck.
