Louisville Football: 5 reasons the Cardinals will beat North Carolina

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - SEPTEMBER 02: Bobby Petrino the head coach of the Louisville Cardinals gives instructions to his team during the game against the Purdue Boilermakers at Lucas Oil Stadium on September 2, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /

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Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images /

4. The Cardinals will establish a running game

One thing the Louisville Cardinals struggled to do in their season opener against Purdue was run the ball. Well, the running backs did anyways.

The Cardinals finished Week One with 146 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown as a team but most of it came from quarterback Lamar Jackson. Jackson had 107 rushing yards in the game.

Reggie Bonnafon finished with six carries for 33 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown. Running back Jeremy Smith had five carries for eight yards.

Leaning on Jackson legs is all fun and good, but it may not be sustainable for all of 2017, especially when they face the Clemson Tigers in a week.

That’s why this is the week the Louisville Cardinals establish a solid running game out of the backfield. That doesn’t mean they won’t look to run with Jackson but variety is key in finding their rhythm on offense.

The Tar Heels are sure to look to contain Jackson early and he’s got options out of the backfield to work with.

Establishing a running game is paramount to a victory in Week Two for Louisville. Whether it’s Jeremy Smith or Reggie Bonnafon, the Cardinals should look to get more than 11 carries out of their backfield.

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