In a game that always felt like it could take the 2024 season in one of two extreme directions, Louisville came out flat and again made more of the same mistakes that plagued them through the first month of the season en route to a 34- 27 home loss to SMU.

The loss ended U of L’s streak of eight straight conference home wins, and dropped the Cardinals to 1-1 in ACC play on the season.

If Louisville was hungry to prove the naysayers wrong after last week’s frustrating loss at Notre Dame, they certainly didn’t show it. The Cardinals came out low on energy and essentially paraded their guests down the field on each of their first two drives to create an early lead.

After trailing by 11 at halftime, U of L appeared to be on the verge of taking control of the game in the fourth quarter, but – and stop me if you’ve heard this before – a failed fourth down- conversion at a crucial moment, some unforgivable penalties and a questionable call from the replay officials resulted in SMU recording their seventh consecutive win on the road.

This loss will result in a lot of questions from the fanbase, and uncomfortable conversations will be had – about the season, about Ron English, about using the transfer portal, and yes, about some of the head coach’s decision-making and philosophies.

All this could have been avoided with a win on Saturday. The team came out and didn’t seem to understand the stakes of the game, and now they’ll have to deal with the (hopefully temporary) consequences.