For the ghouls, one really easy way to stat up a group quickly is to take pre-generated NPCs from the Game Mastery Guide and apply the gravetouched ghoul template from the 3.5 Libris Mortis. I'd probably choose CR 7 or 8 NPCs, since the template will bump them up by 1.
To bolster their AC, make one of the NPCs a cleric, preferably level 6+, that can spam shield of faith before combat, giving its pack members a +3 deflection bonus. With one such cleric in each group of ghouls, you should be able to buff most, if not all, of them with a full allotment of level 1 spells. (EDIT: And, of course, equip them with armor appropriate to their level. I found some of the NPCs in the GMG to be a bit under-equipped, but some sample bias may be skewing my perception.)
You could also make a custom wondrous item that emulates a ring of protection and a cloak of resistance; if you don't want your players to pick these items up after every battle, make it a device that is the result of aberrant biology or a necrotic infection, like a tumor node that is attached to each ghoul's brainstem and makes them tougher and more nimble and sharpminded than normal, but decays shortly after the host body is destroyed. Or, give the PCs the option of removing and implanting the nodes on themselves to gain the bonus, but with negative side-effects like the sickened condition or erratic behavior as per confusion once every five or ten minutes.