Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl: Louisville vs Washington
By Stiofán Mac Fhilib
As we near the New Year, the bowl games come thick and fast and the matchups become tastier. This year’s Sun Bowl looks an intriguing matchup as the Louisville Cardinals take on the Washington Huskies. Stiofán Mac Fhilib gives you his preview of the game in El Paso.
Where and When

The Louisville Cardinals take on the Washington Huskies in the Tony The Tiger Sun Bowl at the Sun Bowl, El Paso, TX, on Tuesday 31st at 2.00pm ET/7.00pm UK. The game is being broadcast by CBS and so is not available to watch in the UK.
Story So Far...
These two prominent Power 4 conference teams have never previously met in college football. And neither faced a team from their opponent’s conference during the 2024 regular season, which saw both schools regress from their 2023 performances. With numerous players from both squads opting out of college football’s second oldest bowl game, it may make for a more open and harder to predict game.
Second year Head Coach, Jeff Brohm, led the Cardinals to an 8-4 regular season record, after going 10-4 (with a 10-1 start) in his first year in charge. Three of the four losses were by one score to a pair of playoff teams and a 10-3 Miami team, and they had encouraging wins over Clemson and Pitt, as well as thumping Kentucky in their Thanksgiving rivalry game.
For the Huskies and new Head Coach. Jedd Fisch, it was a much bigger come-down this season. From the heights of a 14-1 record and a National Championship Game appearance under Kalen DeBoer, they moved to the Big Ten, where they battled to a 6-6 record that saw them lose four of their final six outings. Any bowl game momentum to bring into Spring football would be very welcome at Montlake.
The Quarterbacks
LOUISVILLE: HARRISON BAILEY
With starter Tyler Shough heading to the NFL draft, the redshirt junior from Georgia will be handed the opportunity to make a name for himself. The former five-star prospect signed with Tennessee, then transferred to UNLV before arriving in northern Kentucky. He only saw the field twice in 2024, in out-of-conference mop-up duty, where he completed 8 of 8 passes for 63 yards. The Sun Bowl will afford him the chance to increase those numbers significantly.
WASHINGTON: DEMOND WILLIAMS, JR
The true freshman from Arizona threw at least one pass in all twelve of the Huskies’ regular season games. On a few occasions he replaced the benched Will Rogers, and he started the final game at Oregon. He threw for 570 yards at an impressive 77% completion rate and a 4-0 TD-INT ratio. Louisville may be a step too far at this stage, but any positive momentum heading into 2025 would help the Huskies as they seek to acclimatise to their new conference surroundings.
Who to Watch
Louisville
Caullin Lacy, Wide Receiver – The redshirt senior from Alabama was one of the Cardinals’ top portal acquisitions last year. The South Alabama transfer, however, missed the first month of the season with an injury from Fall Camp. He then played four games before redshirting, to preserve his final year of eligibility for 2025. He has plenty to prove, starting in El Paso, and the ability to do so.
Washington
Denzel Boston, Wide Receiver – The redshirt sophomore from Washington was the Huskies leading receiver in 2024 with 60 catches for over 800 yards and 9 TDs. He had a season high nine receptions in the win over USC and had a pair of 100-yard games against Big Ten opposition. He will surely be Williams Jr’s new best friend, when the freshman QB needs a go-to receiver.
Prediction
Both teams have had some key personnel losses heading to Texas, but the Cardinals have the better depth and hold the upper hand at the skill positions. This ought to be enough to secure Jeff Brohm’s men their first Sun Bowl success since 1958.
Louisville 31-20 Washington

STIOFÁN MAC FHILIB
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A VERY LONG-DISTANCE SUBWAY ALUMNUS OF NOTRE DAME, COUNTY ANTRIM-BASED STIOFÁN HAS BEEN A FAN OF THE FIGHTING IRISH SINCE 2000. FOLLOW HIM ON TWITTER @SMACFHILIB.