UofL Football Recap: Cards Show Their Metal In The Steel City

Pregame Notes:

Good afternoon, Card Nation. It’s Game-day. The University Of Louisville Cardinals make the trip to Steeler country to square off vs the Pitt Panthers. This is the ACC opener for both teams, and with losses by Clemson, FSU and Syracuse, the ACC race is wide open. Coach Pat Narduzzi is known for his relentless defensive pressure packages. I fully expect to hear a lot of Biles and Lovelace this game and they need to not only be identified, but blocked as well. L. If the Louisville offensive line can protect Miller Moss, I expect a big game from Bell and Lacy, coupled with a couple of big time catches by the tight end room. Pittsburgh holds a narrow 11-10 series lead, and hold a 8-5 advantage when playing at home. 

1st Quarter:

Louisville elected to receive the ball in the second half. The Panthers received the ball and marched down the field with ease, but stalled in the red zone. They had to settle for a 30-yard field goal. Louisville went 3-&-out on their first possession. In fact, they went backwards and had to punt. It only took Pitt 2 plays to find the end zone on their second possession. Former Louisville Cardinal Catarius Hicks scored on a 30-yard tipped pass, and Pitt took an early 10-0 lead. On Louisville’s second possession, they were able to move the ball, but a holding penalty pushed the Cards out of field goal range and they had to punt again. Louisville proved once again that they can move the ball on Pitt, but a Miller Moss pick six led to the Cards trailing 17-0 heading into the 2nd quarter. 

2nd Quarter:

Louisville woke up in the second quarter. The Cards special teams led the charge. They recovered a muffed punt, that led to a Miller Moss 1-yard rushing TD to put the Cards on the board. On Louisville’s 2nd possession of the quarter, they moved the ball 65 yards and settled for a 35-yard field goal by Cooper Ranvier. Louisville’s special teams then recovered a botched punt by the Pittsburgh punter. They used one play, a 25-yard pass to Bell from Moss to tie the game at 17. Pittsburgh answered Louisville’s 17-0 run with a quick 10 points and Louisville trailed 27-17 heading into intermission.

Halftime Stats:

T.O.P:  19:44

Passing Yards: 170 (1TD)

Rushing Yards: 13 (1 TD)

Sacks: 0

T.Os:  1 (fumble recovery on muffed punt)

3rd Quarter: 

Coming out of the half, the Louisville offense still couldn’t consistently solve the Pitt defense. Nick Keller connected on a 57-yard field goal to cut into the Pittsburgh lead (20-27). That was the only scoring done by either team in the quarter. Louisville managed 91 yards on 3 possessions in the quarter. Antonio Watts made a huge interception on the 3-yard line to keep it a possession game. Louisville trailed Pittsburgh 20-27 heading into the final quarter.

4th Quarter:

Big connections to Lacy and Skinner (touchdown) to start the quarter for the Cards tied the game at 27. Konga made an appearance in the backfield and recorded Louisville’s first sack of the game. TJ Quinn made amends for the dropped interception earlier with a pick on the positive side of the field. Insert a Nate Kurisky TD catch from 9 yards out. Louisville traveled 30 yards in 6 plays to take their first lead of the game (34-27). The Louisville defense came up clutch on Pitt’s ensuing drive, even with the change in quarterback by Pittsburgh. TJ Quinn sealed the win for Louisville with his 2nd interception of the game. Louisville wins 34-27.

Final Stats:

Passing Yards: 339 (3 TD)

Rushing Yards: 53 (1)

Post Game Notes:

Louisville improves to 4-0 on the season and the all important 1-0 in the ACC. The Cards running game rally struggled for 3 quarters of this game, but the offensive line and running backs really made some big blocks and runs to help slow down that Pitt defense and help preserve the win for Louisville. Transfer Miller Moss is starting to get comfortable in this complex offense, and that’s going to be scary for opposing teams. The offensive line is still a question mark, but the potential is still there and it is still high. Penalties are still a concern for the entire Louisville team, hopefully that gets cleaned up soon. A lot was said about coach English and his defense last year and a lot of those statements were negative. Louisville doesn’t win this game without the defense being good all game. The special teams play really gave Louisville the spark they needed to get back into the game. To win a football game, you need all three phases to play well or be at least serviceable. Today for Pitt special teams was neither good or serviceable. Louisville returns home October 4th, when they face-off against Virginia, who’s coming off a field storming upset vs 8th ranked FSU.

Highlights: