Coming off its first conference loss of the season, No. 20 Duke football faces its second-straight road matchup, this time with No. 18 Louisville. The Blue Zone brings you a key player to watch on each side:
Louisville: Isaac Guerendo
After parting ways with former-head coach Scott Satterfield following an 8-5 season last year, the Jeff Brohm-led Cardinals are 6-1 thus far. At the heart of Louisville's impressive campaign is redshirt junior running back Jawhar Jordan.
The Long Island, N.Y., native capped off a successful 2022 season with an MVP performance in the Wasabi Fenway Bowl, and Jordan has only elevated his play since. His astonishing 7.4 yards per carry place him third in the country, while he also finds himself inside the top 25 rushers in both yards and touchdowns. His 661 rushing yards outpace the combined yardage of all other Cardinal rushers combined. However, Jordan’s status going into Saturday’s matchup with Duke is questionable due to an injured hamstring. This is where senior Isaac Guerendo comes into the equation.
Guerendo played four seasons at Wisconsin before transferring to Louisville to play under Brohm. He ranks second on the Cardinals in rushing attempts, yards and touchdowns, and if Jordan is limited or cannot suit up against the Blue Devils, it will primarily be Guerendo’s backfield. Jordan left Louisville’s most recent game against Pittsburgh early in the contest, which led to Guerendo putting on an impressive performance with 13 carries and two scores — both season-highs.
In the case that the bye week did not allow Jordan to fully heal, keep an eye out for the backup from Clayton, Ind., to step into the leading rusher role. As the Cardinals’ offense relies heavily on the run game, whoever is in that spot will need to perform for Louisville to protect home turf against Duke.
Duke: Dorian Mausi
Regardless of who lines up alongside quarterback Jack Plummer in the backfield, the Blue Devils will need to control the Cardinals’ rushing attack. At the forefront of this effort will be starting linebacker Dorian Mausi. The senior is coming off his most productive outing of the season in Duke’s loss to ACC-leader Florida State. In the frustrating loss to the Seminoles, Mausi racked up a season-high 14 tackles and 1.5 tackles for a loss, as the front seven of the Blue Devils held Preseason All-ACC running back Trey Benson to just 26 yards on 10 carries.
The Detroit native ranks second on the team in tackles with 47 — trailing only fellow linebacker Tre Freeman. Along with being a key contributor in the run game, Mausi can also get involved in pass coverage. The 6-foot-2 backer is often responsible for running backs on routes out of the backfield, and he is one of only five Blue Devils defenders with an interception this season.
In Louisville's lone loss to the Panthers, Plummer was sacked four times and the Cardinals only managed 80 rushing yards. Duke has a chance to dominate Saturday’s matchup if Mausi and the rest of the Blue Devils’ talented front seven can take over and impose their will. If this group struggles, however, Duke could be facing a long night in Louisville and a potential second-straight loss.
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