Russell to strain UNC secondary

Game and Time: No. 24 Louisville at North Carolina. Kickoff is at 1:35 p.m.

Site: Kenan Stadium.

TV/Radio: The game will not be televised. The Tar Heel Sports Network will provide radio coverage; its flagship station is WCHL-AM, 1360.

2004 Records: Louisville is 2-0, 1-0 in Conference USA. North Carolina is 2-1, 1-1 in the ACC.

Series: North Carolina leads 2-1.

Personnel update: Louisville - P.J. Tavarczky (back injury) is out. North Carolina: Ronnie McGill (sprained ankle) is doubtful. Brian Rackley (sprained ankle) is questionable. David Wooldridge (conduct detrimental to the team) has been suspended.

The key matchup: Louisville wide receiver J.R. Russell against the North Carolina secondary.

The Tar Heel defensive backs had their best game in recent memory on Saturday, as they picked off Georgia Tech's Reggie Ball three times and otherwise dominated play, holding the Yellow Jackets to 164 passing yards and just one score through the air.

The Tar Heels owed much of that success to sophomore Jacoby Watkins, who earned ACC Defensive Back of the Week honors for his five tackles, two pass breakups and two interceptions in the game.

And that individual performance came opposite Ga. Tech's Calvin Johnson, the ACC's second-leading receiver.

Should Watkins line up against Russell, though, he'll once again have his hands full.

The senior wide receiver hauled in 75 passes for a school-record 1,213 yards and eight touchdowns a season ago, good for first-team all-conference honors.

If he can break into four digits in receiving this season, he'll be the first Cardinal to do so in back-to-back seasons since Deion Branch in 2001.

But he hasn't broken through yet, and he'll be looking to exploit any weaknesses he finds in the North Carolina defense.

Russell also will have an advantage Johnson did not - a quarterback who can deliver a strong and accurate ball on a consistent basis.

Senior signal-caller Stefan LeFors has completed 68.4 percent of his passes this season for an average of 204.5 yards per game and two scores. He also just wins - his career winning percentage of .733 is second in school history.

If the Tar Heels are going to spring an upset on the Cardinals, they'll have to nd a way to prevent LeFors from getting the ball to Russell.

Final analysis/prediction: Kenan Stadium couldn't have felt more euphoric for North Carolina last Saturday, as the Tar Heels posted arguably their biggest win in three years against an unsuspecting Georgia Tech squad.

The question is - can they do it again?

Louisville hasn't taken the eld in two weeks, and their last game was a 52-21 rout against Army on Sept. 11 - a game from which it's impossible to draw any conclusions.

At the same time, the Tar Heels don't have a blowout loss and a ery verbal tirade from Bunting with which to motivate themselves, something they put to good use a week ago.

Both teams nd themselves in uncertain territory, and neither can claim much of an emotional edge in this game.

In that situation, the team with the greater talent usually is going to win out.

The Bottom Line: Louisville 34, North Carolina 27.

- Compiled by Brian MacPherson