Louisville Cardinals vs. UCF Knights Picks, Predictions, Odds
The Louisville Cardinals and UCF Knights square off at FBC Mortgage Stadium, previously known as the Bounce House, on Friday. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET, and the game can be viewed on ESPN2.
LOUISVILLE CARDINALS vs. UCF KNIGHTS BETTING PREDICTION
The Cardinals opened as 5.5-point favorites on the road against Syracuse last Saturday, but trailed 10-7 after the first quarter. It got worse. Much worse. Syracuse ended up scoring 21 unanswered points after a 36-yard TD run by RB Tiyon Evans late in the first quarter, marching to a 31-7 win over the Cards.
QB Malik Cunningham was mostly held in check, completing 16-of-22 passes for 152 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions, while running for just 34 yards. Evans was the lone bright spot in the offense, amassing 89 yards and the score on his 13 totes. To make matters worse, Louisville was a minus-3 in the turnover department, and that simply won't do, especially on the road.
UCF had a much better time in its opener, albeit against an inferior opponent. The Knights welcomed South Carolina State of the FCS to town last Thursday, shellacking the Bulldogs 56-10.
The Knights raced out to a 21-0 lead in the first quarter, as QB John Rhys Plumlee tossed two TDs and ran for another score. SCSU actually scored 10 straight points, closing the game to 28-10 midway through the third, but Plumlee had two more scoring tosses, and the Knights tacked on a blocked punt for TD to put a bow on the scoring. The two fourth-quarter scores helped OVER bettors rest easy in the final frame, and the special teams score helped get UCF to a cover, too.
Score Prediction: UCF 38, Louisville 31
Best Bet: UCF -5 (-110)
Best Bet: Over 61 (-110)
LOUISVILLE CARDINALS vs. UCF KNIGHTS BETTING ODDS
More Odds | Futures Odds | CFP Central
LOUISVILLE CARDINALS vs. UCF KNIGHTS BETTING RESOURCES
Date: Friday, Sept. 9, 2022
Matchup: ACC vs. AAC
Venue: FBC Mortgage Stadium
Location: Orlando, Florida
Time-TV: ESPN2, 7:30 p.m. ET
LOUISVILLE CARDINALS BETTING ANALYSIS
The Cardinals really struggled on offense in the opener. While a loss wasn't super shocking, the margin of defeat was rather stunning, and the fact Louisville was so sloppy with the ball was not a good sign. Cunningham needs to be better in a hurry, or the Cards are going to find themselves in an untenable situation before the leaves even start to change colors.
Louisville hasn't fared well on the road against the number in recent season, going 7-15-1 ATS in the past 23 games on the road, while going 3-8 ATS in the past 11 tries against AAC teams.
These teams met last season in the 'Ville, with the Cards escaping with a 42-35 win. This will be the first-ever meeting in Orlando, with all three previous meetings in Louisville. All three prior meetings have had 63 or more points scored, so the scoreboard operator at FBC Mortgage Stadium better limber up those fingers.
UCF KNIGHTS BETTING ANALYSIS
The Knights looked good last week, but it wasn't a true test against an FCS side. Trying to track down the dual-threat Cunningham will give us a much better idea about UCF football.
The good news for UCF is that it has had a couple of extra days to prepare for Louisville, and the Knights know the Cardinals will be much better than they showed in Syracuse last week. UCF was even in the turnover department last week against South Carolina State, and it would like to turn over Louisville like 'Cuse did last week.
UCF is 4-1 ATS in the past five games outside of AAC play, but just 2-5 ATS in the past seven appearances on a Friday, while going 2-5 ATS in the past seven following a SU win. It hasn't stacked covers recently, either, going 1-6 ATS in the past seven following a cover in the previous game.
For totals, UCF is a whopping 9-0 in the past nine games played in the month of September, while going 5-1 in the past six non-conference tilts. The OVER is also 4-1 in the past five tries against ACC foes, so expect plenty of points here.
LOUISVILLE CARDINALS vs. UCF KNIGHTS BETTING TRENDS
- Louisville is 7-15-1 ATS in the past 23 road games.
- Louisville is 8-17 ATS in the past 25 Friday games.
- Louisville is 3-8 ATS in the past 11 vs. AAC teams.
- Louisville is 1-4 ATS in the past five non-conference games.
- UCF is 2-5 ATS in the past seven Friday games.
- UCF is 4-1 ATS in the past five non-conference games.
- OVER is 7-2 in Louisville's past nine non-conference games.
- OVER is 4-1 in Louisville's past five Friday games.
- OVER is 5-1 in UCF's past six non-conference games.
- OVER is 9-0 in UCF's past nine September games.
- OVER is 4-1 in UCF's past five vs. ACC teams.
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