U of L-Murray State: 5 things to watch

With a season-opening under its belt, Louisville turns its attention to the Murray State Racers, an FCS team whose nickname is about as apt as it could be.

Murray State scored 73 points in its season opener last Thursday, rolling through 535 yards of offense in just 18:24 of possession. For those counting at home, that's 3.9 points and 28.9 yards per minute of possession.

That's, uh, p. good.

Alas, Murray State played NAIA program Union College, which isn't exactly the best representation of the Racers' offense because ... do I really have to explain?

So, Murray State comes to Louisville as a serious underdog in the most recent version of a big-dog Power Five team vs. an FCS opponent. As I'm typing this, there isn't a line set for this game, but I'd say it'll be in the 20s.

Here are five things to watch in Saturday's 7 p.m. meeting at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium:

1. Does Reggie Bonnafon get some snaps? The freshman quarterback did well enough in preseason camp and over the summer that he moved past a redshirt freshman and a senior to be Will Gardner's backup. He didn't play in Monday's opener, but Saturday has to be considered a great chance for Louisville to get him some playing time. Murray State's offense had a nice start to the season, but that's not going to happen on Saturday. Bonnafon could be in line for a lot of second-half minutes.

2. Any other youngsters get in? Perusing the participation report, several freshmen didn't get into the game. Freshman tight end Micky Crum didn't play. Neither did freshmen cornerbacks De'Eric Culver and Zykiesis Cannon. Charles Standberry caught his first college pass for a touchdown and quite a few others got in the game. (I'll have a post on that in a bit.) But what about the other newcomers? This is a big chance to get them some time, and guys like running back LJ Scott more than a carry or two.

3. What's the defense's encore? Again, I know it's Murray State, but the way the Racers run their offense, it'll at least test Louisville's ability to make defensive calls on the fly. The defense was fantastic on Monday night, though defensive coordinator Todd Grantham said Wednesday that there were a lot of mistakes to clean up. This is a chance to get the backups some time and for the starters to tighten up some things.

4. Gardner's tweaks. Ball security was the main issue with Gardner's debut on Monday. He waited too long to tuck the ball on two different sacks, and he lost fumbles. What's worse, they were inside Louisville's 20-yard line and set up instant red-zone scoring chances for Miami. He also had one throw that should've been intercepted and a few others behind receivers. All to be expected in a season opener and in a college QB's first start, so it's fair to wait-and-see with Gardner. But games like this, plus the meetings with FIU (Sept. 20) and Wake Forest (Sept. 27), can help him round into form.

5. Special teams fixes. The funny thing, just like Gardner's note above, is that a lot went right for the special teams units. Louisville's only slip-up on kickoff or punt coverage, a big punt return deep into U of L territory, was erased by a Miami penalty. But in the Cards' own return game, there were several moments of confusion or hesitation that cost them yards. Corvin Lamb's track-meet sprint 97 yards for a kickoff return TD was the obvious standout. So now Louisville's focus will be making the routine returns a little more reliable.