wake forest vs louisville
Wake Forest vs. Louisville has been a lively matchup lately in both football and men’s basketball, with momentum swinging between the Demon Deacons and the Cardinals.
Latest angle: basketball
The most recent high-profile result came on January 28, 2025, when Louisville beat Wake Forest 72–59 in ACC men’s basketball. Louisville got balanced scoring: Reyne Smith scored 16 points and Chucky Hepburn added 14 points plus eight assists as the Cardinals extended a 10‑game winning streak. For Wake Forest, star guard Hunter Sallis, who entered the night averaging 18.9 points per game (third in the ACC), was held to 13 points and was ejected with 14:47 left after picking up his second technical foul, which became a big talking point among fans.
Fans on college basketball forums zeroed in on that ejection and the late‑game emotions. Some posters argued the player’s actions were embarrassingly reckless and damaging to the program’s image, while others thought the reaction and suggested punishments were completely over the top. This back‑and‑forth has helped keep “Wake Forest vs Louisville” in trending discussion as a kind of flashpoint game for intensity, technicals, and officiating debates.
Recent meeting the other way
Just a year earlier, on January 20, 2024, Wake Forest hammered Louisville 90–65 in Winston‑Salem. In that one, Hunter Sallis scored 19 points, with Andrew Carr adding 18, and Wake Forest used a first‑half 12–2 run—sparked by a Sallis three‑pointer and multiple threes from Parker Friedrichsen—to pull away and never look back. Louisville, by contrast, struggled badly from beyond the arc, hitting only 2 of 11 three‑point attempts. That blowout set up Wake’s “biggest test yet” against top‑five North Carolina and briefly positioned the Deacons as a rising ACC threat.
Football chapter: 2022 turnover meltdown
In football, one of the most talked‑about Wake Forest vs. Louisville games came on October 29, 2022, when Louisville crushed Wake Forest 48–21. The game is remembered less for the final score and more for Wake Forest’s shocking collapse: the Demon Deacons turned the ball over eight times (four interceptions and four fumbles), a disastrous outing that completely derailed what had been a strong season. Louisville, meanwhile, rode a dominant ground attack—Tiyon Evans had 11 carries for 106 yards and a touchdown, including a back‑breaking 52‑yard TD run in the third quarter—plus multiple defensive scores to blow the game open. Cornerback Kei’Trel Clark’s 43‑yard pick‑six right after halftime flipped momentum, and by the time yet another Hartman pass was intercepted and returned 90 yards for a touchdown, Wake’s starting QB was pulled for the backup.
Key numbers from that football game
- Louisville 48, Wake Forest 21.
- Wake Forest turnovers: 8 total (4 interceptions, 4 fumbles).
- Louisville rushing: 37 carries, 212 yards, 3 TDs (about 5.7 yards per carry).
- Tiyon Evans: 11 carries, 106 yards, 1 TD, including a 52‑yard scoring run.
How the matchup feels right now
- In basketball, Wake Forest and Louisville have traded blowouts, with Wake dominating in early 2024 and Louisville responding with a double‑digit win and a long streak in early 2025.
- In football, the 2022 meeting is still remembered as a nightmare for Wake Forest fans and a statement defensive performance for Louisville.
- On forums, “Wake Forest vs Louisville” has become shorthand for wild swings: one year a comfortable Wake rout, the next a steady Louisville win with drama around technicals and player behavior.
Snapshot comparison (recent highlights)
| Sport / Date | Result | Notable Wake Forest angle | Notable Louisville angle |
|---|---|---|---|
| Football – Oct 29, 2022 | Louisville 48–21 Wake Forest | [1]8 turnovers, offense imploded in 3rd quarter | [7]212 rush yards, multiple defensive TDs | [7]
| MBB – Jan 20, 2024 | Wake Forest 90–65 Louisville | [3][8]Hunter Sallis 19 pts, big first‑half run | [3]2–for‑11 from three, never recovered from early run | [3]
| MBB – Jan 28, 2025 | Louisville 72–59 Wake Forest | [5]Sallis held to 13, ejected after 2nd technical | [5]Reyne Smith 16 pts, Hepburn 14 pts and 8 ast, 10‑game win streak | [5]
Forum / trending vibe
Discussion threads around the 2025 basketball game show how emotional fans can get about this matchup. Some Louisville fans praised the Cardinals’ toughness and coaching turnaround, while Wake fans fixated on officiating, technicals, and whether their star’s ejection reflected deeper discipline issues. A few posters called for extremely harsh consequences for the ejected player, which other users mocked as an overreaction, creating a mini‑drama that kept the topic active on Reddit. Game‑thread comments also wandered into jokes about commentators, late‑night tip times, and random infomercial products, which is typical of big‑game forum culture and adds to the matchup’s online personality.
“That was THAT — ****ING — STUPID. That not only badly reflects on the team and college for his conduct…” — a frustrated Wake fan reacting to the ejection, while others pushed back that this was way too extreme.
Quick take if you’re just scanning
- Recent basketball: Wake blew out Louisville in 2024, Louisville answered with a solid win (and star ejection drama) in 2025.
- Recent football: Louisville’s 48–21 win in 2022 is infamous for Wake’s eight turnovers and Louisville’s punishing rushing attack.
- Online buzz: Fans treat Wake Forest vs. Louisville as a volatile, emotional matchup where blowouts, turnovers, and technicals all seem possible—and that keeps it a recurring “trending topic.”
Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.