It's not often that one of the biggest conference games of the year is your conference opener, but that's the situation for No. 23 Louisville as it hosts No. 16 SMU in a top-25 battle that will set the stage for the rest of the ACC title race. SMU and Louisville have each played for the ACC Championship in the last three years and entered the 2026 season as two of the top contenders to challenge Miami for league supremacy. Unfortunately, neither SMU nor Louisville are scheduled to play Miami in the regular season this year.
That means if either is going to beat the Hurricanes, it'll have to happen in Charlotte in the ACC Championship Game, and if Miami is there, only one spot will be up for grabs. That spot, potentially, could be hanging in the balance on Saturday afternoon in Louisville. The Mustangs arrive with a 2-0 record and one conference win logged in the standings after outlasting a power outage and some sloppy play to beat Florida State in Tallahassee in Week 1.
They backed that win up with a victory over UC Davis that was highlighted by Kevin Jennings throwing for 337 yards and five touchdowns in one half of action, getting a game's worth of work in before letting the backups close out the 56-10 victory. This will be Jennings' third time facing Louisville as SMU's starter, and he's looking to defend not only the Mustangs' undefeated status in ACC play but also his 2-0 record against the Cards. Rhett Lashlee is 2-0 against Jeff Brohm as ACC foes: Two years ago, SMU came to Louisville and delivered a crushing 34-27 loss in a game where the Cards' efforts to storm back from a double-digit halftime deficit were denied.
The Mustangs broke a fourth-quarter tie with an 11-play, 89-yard drive that proved to include the game-winning score. That win was part of the Mustangs' arrival not just as an ACC member but a league contender. Rhett Lashlee's crew is 15-2 in conference games since joining the league.
Last season provided yet another win for Lashlee over the Cards, as SMU hosted a hobbled Louisville team that was missing its starting quarterback and top two running backs. That 38-6 win was much less dramatic in terms of game intensity, but the loss did mark three straight conference losses for Jeff Brohm and wrapped up the worst ACC record (4-4) since he took over at his alma mater. Lashlee and Brohm are regularly considered among the ACC's best coaches, but the on-field competition between the two is currently tilted in SMU's favor with two wins in the last two years.
Lincoln Kienholz has elevated Louisville's offense: The Ohio State transfer has proven to be a perfect fit with Jeff Brohm, throwing for at least 300 yards in both games and totaling seven touchdowns (four passing, three rushing) with zero interceptions. He's the team's second leading rusher in recorded attempts (20) and team-leader in rushing yards (111) heading into Week 3, and his versatility has led to even more playmaking opportunities with more experience. After totaling just six points in the first half against Ole Miss, Louisville has logged 91 points in the following six quarters.
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