MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- West Virginia Coach Bill Stewart hopes his team can curb Louisville's passing in a Big East Conference football game Saturday at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium.

"We've got to keep quarterback Hunter Cantwell from getting a rhythm," Stewart said Tuesday at his weekly press conference. "When he gets into a rhythm, he reminds me of Mike Teel of Rutgers (the league's second-leading passer).

"When Cantwell and his receivers get into an absolute pattern passing and catching, they are really special. When he gets hot, he's a real hot shot. I hope and pray that we can keep him out of rhythm."

Stewart is hopeful that, in doing so, the WVU defense can start by limiting the Cardinals' yardage on first downs. In the long run, that probably would cut down on their third-down conversions.

At the same time, of course, the Mountaineers hope their offense can assume some semblance of consistency and control the ball for highly productive drives. Inconsistent ball-moving has been a season-long problem.

"We need to hold them on third downs and make more of our third downs," Stewart said.

Cantwell, a 6-foot-5, 236-pound senior, has completed 170-of-296 passes for 1,947 yards and 14 touchdowns. But he has been intercepted 12 times.

Doug Beaumont is the team's leading receiver with 46 catches for 569 yards. He also is an outstanding kick returner.

This will be a big game for both West Virginia (6-3, 3-1) and Louisville (5-5, 1-4). The Mountaineers still are in the mix for the conference championship, while the Cardinals need a victory to become bowl eligible.

While WVU leads the series 7-2, Stewart pointed out the rivalry has taken on high-scoring shootout status in the last four meetings.

The Mountaineers prevailed 36-34 in Morgantown in 1993 before Louisville joined the Big East. Then, they rallied for a  46-44 triple-overtime win here in 2005. The Cardinals won 44-34 in Louisville in 2006. WVU was a 38-31 winner at home in 2007.

"Those were great games to watch," Stewart said. "They showed well on TV for the Big East. Those were impressive for both schools."

Stewart said Jarrett Brown, the Mountaineers' backup quarterback and a reserve slot receiver, will be seen in the backfield Saturday, but he declined to say where in the backfield.

Brown is fully recovered from an injury.

"He is healthy now, but he was hurting (as the starting quarterback against Syracuse on Oct. 11) and played his heart out," Stewart said. "I sure hope he can finish the season."

Stewart said this late in the season almost all college football teams have some players "dinged up," but that WVU, thanks to the bye week, is in fairly good health.