Kentucky vs Louisville Prediction: Who Can Salvage Their Season?

Originally posted on College Football News
By Pete Fiutak | Last updated Nov 25, 2025 4:48 PM ET

Everything was going great for Louisville.

It gave James Madison its only loss, made up for the loss to Virginia with a stunner over Miami, and at 7-1, it was deep in the mix for the ACC title and a College Football Playoff spot.

A three-game losing streak to Cal, Clemson, and SMU ended all of that, and while it's bowl eligible, everything crashed with a thud. Making it two wins in a row over Kentucky would allow everyone to exhale.

The Wildcats have been weird.

They started 2-5 and weren't going anywhere, and then a three-game winning streak changed everything. A blowout loss to Vanderbilt last week derailed the fun, but beat the rival, and they're bowl eligible.

Kentucky vs Louisville Preview

Oct 18, 2025; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats quarterback Cutter Boley (8) throws a pass during the first quarter against the Texas Longhorns at Kroger Field. © Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

How To Watch Kentucky vs Louisville

Date: Saturday, November 29, 2025
Game Time: 12:00 PM ET
TV: ACC Network
Location: L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium, Louisville, KY

Why Kentucky Will Win

Get the ground game going right away.

Carter Boley and the Kentucky quarterbacks have been hit-or-miss, but when the Wildcats are able to pound away, they win.

They cranked up the attack in the blowout over Florida, rumbled well in the near miss against Ole Miss, and offset a strong day from Boley and the passing game against Texas.

It's Kentucky. It wants to control the tempo and make the other side play its style. Running for at least 200 yards will do that, but ...

Why Louisville Will Win

Louisville has yet to allow 200 rushing yards.

Kentucky was able to beat Auburn when the offense wasn't working well, but that's Auburn. That was never going to be a shootout.

The Cardinals have to get the offense going early. They want to make Kentucky start pushing the offense, take a few chances, and then the mistakes will come.

After the last few weeks, it needs to create a few breaks.

Louisville beat Miami by coming up with four picks, forced three more takeaways a week later against Boston College, and that's been it. The D has forced just one turnover over the last four games. Fortunately for the home side ...

Kentucky vs Louisville Prediction, Betting Lines

Kentucky is a turnover machine.

It survived Florida even though it gave it up four times, gave up three picks against Vanderbilt, and in the last seven games against FBS teams, it turned it over 18 times.

Both teams are struggling to find consistent quarterback play, but Louisville will get a bit more out of its defense, the running game will be okay, and the woes of the last three weeks will be gone with a tough, fun win.

Louisville 27, Kentucky 20
Line: Louisville -3, o/u: 46.5
ATS Confidence out of 5: 3
Must See Rating: 3.5

Consensus Line from BetMGM, Caesars, DraftKings, and FanDuel. Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.

- Expert Picks of the Top Friday Games

This article first appeared on College Football News and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: