Louisville wide receiver Jadon Thompson will miss the rest of the season with a knee injury, and the 15th-ranked Cardinals also could be without star cornerback Quincy Riley for Saturday’s game at No. 16 Notre Dame.
Thompson, a senior, had two touchdown catches in Louisville’s season-opening win against Austin Peay but injured a knee late in Saturday’s 31-19 win against Georgia Tech. He had 88 receiving yards on six catches.
Riley, who started all 13 games last season and had two interceptions, is dealing with an ankle injury from the Georgia Tech game, where he had a forced fumble and a tackle for loss.
“He’s 50-50 at best,” Louisville head coach Jeff Brohm told ESPN. “He’s got a little bit of a high ankle [injury], so we’ll see where it goes. I’m hopeful but I’m not optimistic.”
Louisville could be down two receivers with Thompson out and Caullin Lacy working his way back from a broken collarbone suffered in a preseason scrimmage. Lacy led the Sun Belt in receiving yards (1,316) and finished third nationally in receiving average (109.7) last season at South Alabama. He began practicing again with the team last week but did not play against Georgia Tech.
“It’ll be close,” Brohm said of Lacy. “I would anticipate the SMU game [Oct. 5], this game will be all dependent on whether he just wants to go. I’m not going to say he’s going to be 100 percent. It’s just his call. It’s 50-50 at best.”
Alabama transfer Ja’Corey Brooks and junior Chris Bell have stepped up for Louisville, combining for 464 receiving yards and four touchdowns in the team’s first three games.
“Those two guys have to play well for us every week or we’re not going to be great in the passing game,” Brohm said. “They have to make a difference.”
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Jimbo Fisher was brought to tears while returning to Florida State‘s campus for the first time since resigning to take the Texas A&M coaching job in 2017.
Fisher, now an ACC Network analyst, was wildly cheered at the start of the network’s pregame show outside Doak Campbell Stadium. He turned in his chair, did the tomahawk chop to the crowd of garnet-clad fans and started to cry.
“Brings tears to my eyes,” Fisher said. “Remember your family growing up here and hearing that chant. When you heard it, something to it.
“The players, the memories. It’s Miami week.”
Fisher moved back to Tallahassee after Texas A&M fired him in 2023. But he hadn’t stepped foot on campus until his job brought him back.
Fisher coached at Florida State for 10 years (2007-17), first as an offensive coordinator and then as head-coach-in-waiting before taking over for legend Bobby Bowden in January 2010. He won a national title in 2013 in the middle of a three-year run of capturing ACC championships.
He was hired in July as an analyst with ACC Network.
“I always loved Florida State,” Fisher said Friday while meeting with reporters. “Florida State was home. It’s very surreal. I got butterflies. The antsy in your stomach of coming back because it meant so much to you.”
Fisher predicted Florida State would beat Miami on a “wide middle” field goal attempt.
CINCINNATI — Brendan Sorsby passed for 214 yards and two touchdowns, Evan Pryor ran for 111 yards and two TDs and Cincinnati used a 17-point first quarter to beat No. 14 Iowa State 38-30 on Saturday.
The Bearcats (4-1, 2-0 Big 12) beat a ranked opponent at home for the first time since beating No. 16 Houston 35-20 on Dec. 4, 2021.
The Cyclones (5-1, 2-1) trailed 31-7 with 1:08 left in the second quarter before rallying to get within eight with 1:56 left in the game. Cincinnati recovered an onside kick to end the threat.
“It’s a different team,” Bearcats coach Scott Satterfield said, simply, when asked the difference between last year’s 5-7 team and this year’s roster. “It’s different players.”
Rocco Becht passed for 314 yards and two touchdowns and ran another two in for the Cyclones.
Sorsby’s 82-yard touchdown pass to Caleb Goodie in the fourth quarter was the Bearcats’ longest pass play since 2015.
Iowa State, one of the least penalized teams in the country, had five penalties for 35 yards in the first half. The Cyclones jumped offside on third down to extend the Bearcats’ opening drive, which led to a 30-yard TD run from Pryor for the game’s first score.
The Cyclones went on to take a 17-0 lead at the end of the first quarter. Becht got the Cyclones on the board early in the second on a 14-yard run.
Becht scored on a 4-yard run on the final play of the half and then threw an 11-yard TD pass to Brett Eskildsen on the opening drive in the third quarter.
“Rocco Becht is a dang warrior. You keep looking up and he continues to make plays,” Bearcats coach Scott Satterfield said. “That is a huge win for us as we went toe-to-toe with one of the best teams in the Big 12 over the last few seasons.”
The Cyclones were without 16 injured players, including all-Big 12 defensive backs Jeremiah Cooper and Jontez Williams. They also were without their top two kickers.
PITTSBURGH — Surprise starter Mason Heintschel threw for four touchdowns and led Pittsburgh to five first-half scores during a 48-7 win against Boston College on Saturday.
Heintschel, 18, a true freshman, made his first career start for Pitt (1-1, 3-2 ACC) in place of redshirt sophomore Eli Holstein. Holstein was pulled after throwing two interceptions during last week’s home loss against Louisville. Holstein saw fourth-quarter action Saturday with the result already decided.
Heintschel completed 30 of 41 passes for 323 yards and four touchdowns against Boston College (0-3, 1-4), as Pitt raced to a 31-0 halftime lead and piled on 503 yards of total offense.
Kenny Johnson caught a career-high nine passes for a personal-best 115 yards and a touchdown, while Juelz Goff and Ja’Kyrian Turner rushed for scores with All-America running back Desmond Reid sidelined for a second straight game. Justin Holmes, Deuce Spann and Zion Fowler-El also caught Heintschel touchdowns, as Pitt snapped a seven-game losing streak against Power Four teams.
Boston College entered with one of the top passing attacks in the country, but the Eagles suffered their fourth straight loss. Boston College had 136 yards of total offense until a late 80-yard scoring drive.
Boston College had 69 yards of total offense in the first half, including minus-9 yards rushing, as the Eagles punted four times, fumbled and turned the ball over on downs on six first-half drives.
Heintschel guided Pitt to five scores in six first-half drives, including four touchdowns and a field goal.
Heintschel led the Panthers to a touchdown on his first drive, an 11-play, 76-yard series that spanned 5:30. Heintschel was 4-of-4 for 29 yards including a 14-yard touchdown pass to Holmes. He also rushed for 16 yards and helped Pitt convert a pair of third downs.
Pitt scored three touchdowns in the second quarter, including two scores in the last two minutes of the half.
Johnson caught a 12-yard touchdown pass on fourth-and-1 to complete a nine-play, 66-yard drive in 3:51. Goff rushed for a 3-yard touchdown with 1:56 to play in the half and Turner added a 6-yard rushing score to give Pittsburgh a 31-0 lead 10 seconds before halftime.