Week 7 Look Ahead: Louisville-Clemson

This is one of the biggest weeks of the season for Louisville football, perhaps the biggest week of the 2014 campaign. It's at least comparable to the ACC opener against Miami.

The Cardinals (5-1) travel to Clemson for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff on Saturday. Clemson's home field, at Memorial Stadium, is considered one of the toughest places to play in the country. Death Valley, as it's called, holds 81,500.

But the biggest reason why this trip is so important: Clemson is one of the ACC's two elite programs right now. No, the Tigers haven't been to a national-title game during this recent run of success, but they've won 10 games in each of the past three seasons, including two trips to the Orange Bowl. They got off to a rough start, but the Tigers look a lot more like the team we thought they were as they get ready for Louisville.

Let's run through five different things to watch this week as U of L preps for its second consecutive road game and fourth of the season.

Who's the quarterback? We'll get this question answered (possibly) sometime this week, perhaps as early as Monday afternoon. Louisville coach Bobby Petrino was oddly cryptic about Will Gardner's status in Friday's game at Syracuse, and it seems as though Gardner is probably ready to play again. Do the Cards stick with freshman Reggie Bonnafon, who's been solid in two consecutive starts? Or do they go back with Gardner, who was Petrino's guy from January through most of September? Does the road atmosphere influence the decision? Or does Louisville prefer a mobile QB against a super pass rush?

Best offense Louisville's seen. Here's the laundry list of reasons: Clemson ranks in the top 27 in the country in scoring, total and passing offense. The Tigers have only lost four turnovers all season. They have the sixth-lowest number of penalties. They're No. 20 in third-down conversions.

That said, Clemson's also struggled a little bit in the red zone, allowed 12 sacks in five games and ranks in the 70s in rushing offense. So that'll make Saturday really interesting: How does Louisville defend the red zone and stop the pass? The Cards haven't faced a primo offense like this all season, and Clemson is far better than any team Louisville's played.

Radcliff's reign. Louisville has its new offensive star, and it's redshirt sophomore Brandon Radcliff. The running back has strung together back-to-back 100-yard rushing games. He'll absolutely have to do the same hard, energetic running that he's done the past two weeks if Louisville wants to score on Clemson's defense. The Tigers' D isn't quite as highly ranked as Louisville's, but it's close: Clemson ranks in the top 25 in pass, rush and total defense and in the top 50 in scoring defense.

Not-so-elementary, my dear Watson. Clemson, like Louisville, has a freshman quarterback who fans love. Deshaun Watson, a heralded recruit out of high school, won the starting job after a few impressive performances off the bench. He is similarly sized to Bonnafon, at 6-3, 200 pounds, but he comes with a bit more pedigree. Watson was the No. 1 dual-threat QB in the country and a top-50 recruit nationally. He has 12 touchdown passes against one interception. He's completed 69 percent of his passes. And he's a constant threat to get out and run. Stopping Watson will be a challenge of the tallest order for Louisville's talented defense.

Does Parker play?

Ah, yes. The $1 million question. If Louisville's star receiver comes back and is cleared to play, that would be a huge, huge boon for Louisville's offense. He is, in my opinion, the Cards' best overall player, though Lorenzo Mauldin could make a strong argument, too. If Parker can play, his return would provide a major security blanket and playmaker for U of L. As my colleague Adam Himmelsbach put it, Parker's probably worth three points or so a week for Louisville's offense. The Cards need that boost.