Syracuse, N.Y. — Lincoln Kienholz delivered a standout performance with two rushing touchdowns and one touchdown pass as Louisville topped Syracuse 34-26 on Saturday. The victory marked a positive step for Louisville, who improved to 4-3 overall and 3-2 in the ACC.
The game featured a high-scoring first half with both teams combining for 669 yards, the most in the ACC since 2022. However, the pace slowed significantly in the second half, with only 218 total yards achieved. Louisville’s offense struggled after halftime, gaining just 58 yards following a robust first-half performance of 367 yards.
Kienholz sparked Louisville’s offense with an 82-yard quarterback counter to give the Cardinals a 14-10 lead late in the first quarter. He added a one-yard touchdown run to make it 21-16 early in the second quarter and connected with Isaac Brown for a 46-yard touchdown pass just before halftime, allowing Louisville to take a 28-23 advantage into the break.
Keyjuan Brown contributed significantly to Louisville’s scoring, both of his touchdowns occurring from five yards out and one of those set up by Cameron White’s interception. Brown’s final touchdown helped secure the Cardinals’ victory with 7:34 remaining.
Syracuse, now 2-4 on the season and still searching for its first conference win at 0-4, has extended its losing streak to 11 straight ACC games. The Orange have also struggled against Power 5 opponents, losing the last 12 matchups. This season, Syracuse has been outscored 78-36 during second halves of games.
Malachi Nelson, making his second start for Syracuse, completed 26 of 39 passes for 315 yards, including two touchdowns. His targets included Umari Hatcher, who set a career high with 13 receptions for 224 yards, marking his fourth game this season with over 100 receiving yards. Nelson also threw two interceptions, one of which was pivotal in the game’s outcome.
Cumulative penalties continued to be an issue for Syracuse, which leads the nation in that statistic. The team committed eight penalties totaling 75 yards during Saturday’s game, including three unsportsmanlike conduct penalties in the first half.
Looking ahead, Louisville will enter a bye week before hosting Stanford on October 31. Syracuse will face North Carolina in its next game on October 24, as it aims to turn its season around.
