First look: No. 20 Duke football travels to No. 18 Louisville in key ACC game

When this weekend’s ACC football games are done, every team near the top of the standings will have played at least four league games.

The midway point of the ACC race is upon us with No. 4 Florida State (7-0, 5-0 ACC) leading the way, followed by three other ranked teams.

Two of those other three are No. 20 Duke (5-2, 2-1 ACC) and No. 18 Louisville (6-1, 3-1 ACC), who will meet Saturday at 3:30 p.m. at the Cardinals’ L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium.

With No. 17 North Carolina (6-1, 3-1 ACC) also in that scrum fighting for second place, the race for a top-two finish and an ACC championship game berth in the now-divisionless ACC is on.

Whichever team wins Saturday’s game at Louisville will still be in great shape to reach the title game, while the losing team will need to win out and get help from other teams to climb back up the standings.

Both Duke and Louisville lost their most recent games. Florida State beat the Blue Devils, 38-20, in Tallahassee, Florida, on Saturday night. Louisville lost 38-21 at Pittsburgh on Oct. 14 and is coming off its open week.

Key matchup: Louisville D vs. Duke rushing offense

The Cardinals have been effective in stopping the run this season, allowing just 97.1 rushing yards per game and 3.09 yards per carry. Both are No. 2 among ACC teams.

Duke’s offense, with running backs Jordan Waters and Jaquez Moore splitting the carries, is No. 2 in the ACC in rushing yards per game (198.89) and first in average yards per carry (5.62).

Duke’s 18 rushing touchdowns lead the ACC as a team and Waters is tied with Boston College quarterback Thomas Castellanos for the league individual lead with nine rushing touchdowns. Moore rushed for a career-best 110 yards, including a 42-yard touchdown run, against Florida State on Saturday night.

The Blue Devils offensive front will have to block well to create the openings that normally allow Duke to pick up yards on the ground. Riley Leonard’s uncertain injury status adds another wrinkle because the Cardinals could load extra players close to the line to stop the run because Duke’s passing game might not be as potent.

Duke player to watch: QB Riley Leonard

On Saturday night at Florida State, Duke junior quarterback Leonard played his first game since suffering a high ankle sprain on Sept. 30 against Notre Dame. Clearly not fully healthy, Leonard toughed out nearly three quarters of play before the ankle was re-injured as he was being sacked. He left late in the third quarter and didn’t return.

Duke coach Mike Elko said Leonard was “bugging him” to return to the game but Elko and the medical staff didn’t feel Leonard’s ankle was well enough. So the waiting game on Leonard’s status begins anew. Though the injury doesn’t appear as severe as the original sprain three weeks ago, Leonard will go through practice this week to test the ankle before a decision is made on his availability.

As was the case the last two weeks, redshirt freshman Henry Belin IV will be available to play if Leonard is unable to go.

Vegas betting odds

The Cardinals were set as a favorite on Sunday, when the opening lines had Louisville favored by 4.5 points.

No. 20 Duke at No. 18 Louisville

Teams: Duke Blue Devils (5-2, 2-1 ACC) vs. Louisville Cardinals (6-1, 3-1 ACC)

Where: L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium, Louisville, Kentucky

Date: Saturday, Oct. 28

Time: 3:30 p.m.

TV: ESPN

Stream: DIRECTV Stream, fuboTV, Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, SlingTV