Louisville @ Florida State preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 17, 2016 ) Florida State 20, Louisville 63

Louisville announced its presence as a national championship contender in 2016 by annihilating then-No. 2 Florida State, but both teams find themselves struggling just to stay relevant in the Atlantic Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference just over 13 months later. A pair of recent powers hovering around the .500 mark hope to improve their recent fortunes Saturday when the Cardinals visit the Seminoles.

Eventual Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson accounted for five touchdowns as Louisville throttled Florida State 63-20 last September - a victory that marked the third of four straight games in which the Cardinals scored at least 59 points. While the offense has more than held up its end of the bargain this season despite not maintaining the same pace as last season's team, the defense has not after giving up at least 520 total yards for the third time in 2017 in last weekend's 45-42 home loss to Boston College. The Seminoles avoided their first 1-4 start to a season since 1975 with a 17-10 triumph at Duke - their fourth consecutive contest decided by seven points or fewer. The Seminoles have yet to win outside the state of North Carolina, however, losing in Atlanta to No. 1 Alabama in the opener as well as at home versus North Carolina State and Miami (Fla.).

TV: Noon ET, ESPN. LINE: Florida State -6.5.

ABOUT LOUISVILLE (4-3, 1-3 ACC): Jackson (3,221 career rushing yards) continues to set school records by the week, breaking Walter Peacock's mark (3,204; 1972-75) for the most ever by a Cardinal; he also scored his 42nd career rushing touchdown, breaking Lenny Lyles' mark of 41 from 1954-57. For only the second time in school history, the Cardinals had a pair of 100-yard receivers and 100-yard rushers in the same game last week, as Dez Fitzpatrick (127) and Jaylen Smith (118) each topped 100 yards receiving while Jackson (180) and Reggie Bonnafon (107) surpassed the century mark on the ground. Fitzpatrick's seventh touchdown catch moved him into a tie with Arnold Jackson (1997) and Mario Urrutia (2005) for most receiving touchdowns in a season by a freshman.

ABOUT FLORIDA STATE (2-3, 2-2): The Seminoles rank 121st in the country in scoring offense (18.2 points) and 110th in total offense (346.6 yards), but a new offensive line tweak seemed to spark them against Duke as left tackle Derrick Kelly moved to left guard while freshman Josh Ball took over at Kelly's old spot. Florida State allowed a season-low two sacks while its 84th-ranked rushing attack (144.8) churned out a season-high 228 yards on the ground, including 115 from freshman Cam Akers. Auden Tate paces the team with 19 receptions, 312 yards and five touchdowns despite finishing with only three catches for 30 yards against Duke; he has scored one touchdown in every game this season - tied for the longest active streak in the nation.

EXTRA POINTS

1. With 332 yards passing and 180 yards rushing last week, Jackson became the first FBS player in at least 20 years to top 300 yards passing and 150 yards rushing in the same game twice in his career.

2. Per Football Study Hall, Florida State ranks second-to-last in FBS in adjusted pace - a metric that takes into account both the number of plays a team attempts and the type of play.

3. With last weekend's victory, Seminoles coach Jimbo Fisher joined predecessor Bobby Bowden as the only coaches to win 80 of their first 100 games in the ACC.

PREDICTION: Florida State 31, Louisville 27