Jeff Brohm called his starting quarterback a game-time decision on Monday. Five days before kickoff.

That is not an injury update. Our read is that Louisville already knows Lincoln Kienholz is not playing Saturday, and the betting line agrees, because it has moved three and a half to four points toward NC State since the week started.

So this preview is built around the question that decides the game. If Louisville hands it to Davin Wydner, a senior who spent two years at West Georgia and has thrown four passes as a Cardinal, can NC State's defense make him beat them?

Ethan's answer is yes, with reservations. Louisville ranks 114th nationally in defensive success rate and 108th in EPA per play. They sit in the fourth percentile against explosive plays and the first percentile against explosive passes. Wake Forest beat them 30-27 last week by holding Isaac Brown and Keyjuan Brown to two yards a carry across 38 attempts and simply refusing to let anything get behind them.

The counter-argument is real, and it is Keyjuan Brown at 9.3 yards a carry against an NC State run defense that leads the ACC at 121.5 yards allowed. Whether that number is real or an artifact of playing Richmond and an App State team that could not run at all is the argument we spend the most time on.

Also in here: why Louisville keeping Isaac Brown while NC State lost Hollywood Smothers still stings, whether Duke Scott is only good when the matchup is easy, and the defensive line numbers that are genuinely hard to look at. Harvey Dyson leads the team with six pressures. The whole team has six sacks. Josiah Victor has not recorded one all season.

Layton has it 28-24 NC State. Ethan picked the upset and would not put a number on it.

Kickoff is 3:30 Saturday at Carter-Finley on ACC Network. Where do you have it? Find us on Twitter and Instagram @tuffytalknow.

Tuffy Talk is live every Monday at 8:30 PM. Football all fall, basketball all winter, baseball all spring. Follow the show wherever you get your podcasts so you never miss one.

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