For as explosive as Louisville’s run game has been under Jeff Brohm, stopping the run hasn’t been a piece of cake. 

The Cardinals were out-gained on the ground in five games last season and finished 2024 allowing 3.7 yards a carry and 132.5 yards a game to their opponents. When Louisville faces James Madison on Friday night, stopping the run will be priority number one for the defensive front. 

Winning the ground game wasn’t a problem for Louisville in the week one win over Eastern Kentucky. The Cardinals put up 229 rushing yards, averaging 7.6 yards a carry, while the Colonels totaled 74 rushing yards on 39 attempts, a 1.9 yards per carry average. It was expected. Louisville’s offensive and defensive lines were supposed to be dominant against an FCS opponent, and it swung the game to a 51-17 final score in favor of the Cards.

When you think of JMU football, you think of a lot of points and spreading the ball all over the field. But this year’s Dukes team, under second-year head coach Bob Chesney, is projected to statistically have one of the best rushing attacks in the country. 

In the 45-10 win versus Weber State, James Madison ran the ball for 313 yards with running backs George Pettaway and Wayne Knight combining for 188 yards. The Dukes scored four touchdowns on the ground. Pettaway transferred from UNC a couple of years ago and very well could be the best back among the group of five schools. The 5-foot-10, 200-pound all-purpose back was named preseason first-team All-Sun Belt and ran for 980 yards, plus five touchdowns as a sophomore. Knight will be the smallest guy on the field at 5-foot-7, but he has breakaway capability in both the run and pass game. He broke off a 59-yard run in week one.  

There’s been a lot of game-week chatter around stopping the running quarterback — which JMU has two of in Matthew Sluka and Alonza Barnett III — and rightfully so. They both carried the ball five times in week one and ran it in for a score. The pair of talented backs and dual-threat QBs gives JMU a lethal read option game, putting the defense in a bind and forcing linemen to make decisions. 

The Dukes’ offensive line is pretty experienced individually, but like the Cardinals’, they haven’t played much time together. Although both units looked excellent in their week one wins against subpar competition. 

Louisville’s defensive ends must stay disciplined and keep an eye on Barnett in the backfield. He can sling it, too. Pass rushers Clev Lubin, Wesley Bailey, and AJ Green had a huge first week, but weren’t tested on the perimeter like they will be on Friday. 

The interior of the Cards’ front is experienced with Rene Konga and Jordan Guerad holding things down. Both are sleeper picks to have big seasons, and Gurad led the U of L in tackles last week with six, and also added a tackle for loss. 

“The guys that have been here, they show up and you can count on them,” Brohm said Monday. “Those are two young men that have been here; they understand what we’re doing, the speed of the game, our package, how we practice, what we need to work on…obviously, we’ll be tested this week.” 

If James Madison can establish the run and control the time of possession, we may have a tight one late. Getting quick stops, such as three-and-outs, keeping the Dukes behind the sticks, and winning the turnover battle will be key for the Louisville defense. The Cards have the tools to be more aggressive defensively than they were last year; we just haven’t seen it yet. 

The metrics indicate that Louisville is the best ACC opponent James Madison has faced since Tyrod Taylor’s 13th-ranked Virginia Tech team in 2010. The then FCS-Dukes won that game 21-16 in Blacksburg.