LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The University of Louisville football team plays its second neutral-site game of the season when it travels to Indianapolis to face Indiana in Lucas Oil Stadium on Saturday.

The game is slated for a noon kickoff.

Louisville coach Jeff Brohm’s alma mater is off to its best start since 2017 when it won its first four. Brohm also returns to Lucas Oil Stadium, where his Purdue career started with a 2017 loss to the Cardinals, and ended with a loss to Michigan in last year’s Big Ten title game. A second straight win would put Hoosiers above .500 for the first time since last October and would give eighth-year Indiana coach Tom Allen his 32nd career win to break a tie with the late John Pont for No. 6 in Hoosiers history.

The Cardinals are off to an exciting start with back-to-back wins over Murray State and Georgia Tech. The offense exploded in their home opener, thumping the Racers 56-0. It was their first shutout since blanking Syracuse, 30-0, in 2020. UofL held the Racers to just 166 yards of total offense. The Cardinals racked up 690 yards of total offense against MSU.

One key matchup will be Cardinals quarterback Jack Plumber against Indiana’s stingy defense. Plummer spent four seasons with Brohm at Purdue before transferring to Cal for the 2022-23 season. The reunion seems to be working. Plummer is completing 64% of his passes, with 494 passing yards with four touchdowns and three interceptions. Two of those came last week against the Racers.

The Hoosiers have allowed just 258 yards passing, 11th in FBS, and limited Ohio State star Marvin Harrison Jr. to two catches in Week 1.

Look for UofL to target their two offensive standouts in running back Jawhar Jordan and wide receiver Jamari Thrash. Both possess the breakaway speed Brohm craves. Jordan already has two touchdown runs of 70 or more yards this season and has topped the 100-yard mark five times in the last seven games. Thrash has three touchdown receptions and four overall scores while averaging 17 yards per catch.

Indiana will need a spark from its two major playmakers, quarterback Tayven Jackson and running back Jaylin Lucas. Both have brought a needed boost to the somewhat conservative offense. Last week, Lucas had 10 carries for 90 yards and two scores, four catches for 39 yards and he can be a threat on kick returns as well.

If the past is prologue, then history is on Brohm’s side. The head coach went 4-1 against Allen during their battles for the Old Oaken Bucket, awarded to the winner of the annual Indiana-Purdue game. This rivalry will be much shorter lived, with news that IU was reneging on its three-year agreement to play Louisville. 

The Cards are also heading into enemy territory. This will be the third straight game the Hoosiers play in Indiana.

The game will likely come down to which is stronger: Indiana’s defense (tied at No. 34 in FBS for scoring defense) or Louisville’s offense (No. 13 in FBS for points per game). 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.