Content on this page may include affiliate links. If you click and sign up/place a wager, we may receive compensation at no cost to you.
The 24th-ranked Louisville Cardinals look to rebound from an opening game loss when they take on the Villanova Wildcats in their 2026 home opener on Friday. Louisville is 71-33-3 all-time in home openers, including a 3-0 mark under coach Jeff Brohm. The Wildcats (1-1), who finished second in the Coastal Athletic Association and 12-3 overall in 2025, are coming off a 17-16 win over Bucknell in Week 1. The Cardinals (0-1), who tied for seventh in the ACC at 4-4 and were 9-4 overall a year ago, dropped a 41-38 decision at Mississippi on Sunday. Visit our DraftKings promo code review and get $200 in bonus bets as a new user after $5+ in wagers here:
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET from L&N Stadium in Louisville, Ky. The Cardinals are 36.5-point favorites in the latest Villanova vs. Louisville odds. The over/under for total points is 56.5. This will be the first-ever meeting between the teams.
Before making any Villanova vs. Louisville picks, check out what SportsLine college football expert Emory Hunt has to say.
Hunt is a CBS Sports HQ analyst who also is featured on SportsLine's Early Edge show breaking down NFL and CFB matchups. He enters this season on a 7-3 (+358) roll over his past 10 college football picks. Anyone following could have seen HUGE returns!
Now, Hunt has locked in another confident pick for Villanova vs. Louisville. We can tell you he's leaning Over on the point total, but he knows a crucial X-factor makes one side of the spread a MUST-BACK! You ABSOLUTELY need to see what it is before locking in any picks of your own.
So who wins Villanova vs. Louisville on Friday, and what x-factor makes one side of the spread hit HARD? Join SportsLine RIGHT NOW to see which side of the Villanova vs. Louisville line to back, all from the expert who is up +358 on his last 10 college football picks!
Don't miss out: All new SportsLine memberships include Paramount+ Premium -- a $13.99/month value -- for no extra cost! Join now and get it all.
GET VEGAS EXPERT PICKS FOR NFL, MLB, NBA, CBB, GOLF, NHL, HORSE RACING AND MORE - PLUS ADVANCED COMPUTER SIMULATIONS, WINNING TOOLS, AND MORE!
Written by Daniel Kohn
View expert profile
