September 16, 2007
Kentucky brings Louisville back to earth
Louisville came into yesterday's game in Commonwealth Stadium with one eye on the National Championship. And while they were looking elsewhere, Kentucky hit them right in the mouth with a shot they never saw coming.
For whatever reason, the Cardinals (and Cardinals fans) didn't give Kentucky much of a shot to win. But the writing was on the wall for anyone who cared to read it:
- Louisville had given up over 800 yards of offense in their last two games, but had yet to face anyone like Kentucky's Andre Woodson, who set a new SEC record for consecutive passes without an INT,
- Lousiville had struggled to control the middle of the field defensively against Middle Tennessee State, and Kentucky made them pay with play-action right down the middle,
- Louisville's O-Line had not given up a sack all year, but Kentucky's aggressive defense creates pressure and the Wildcats sacked Brian Brohm three times (four times, really, but one was negated on a personal foul),
- Kentucky was creating turnover opportunities and ranked near the top in turnover margin. The Wildcats finished the game +2 in turnovers, including one Broehm interception that led to a KY touchdown. UK finished the game ranked sixth in the nation in turnover margin.
The Cardinals had a shot to win it but had a go ahead touchdown on a QB sneak called back. Mike at Card Chronicle puts it succintly:
If you don't know how to line up for a quarterback sneak on the goalline, you probably don't deserve to win.
Agreed.
Is this a "great" Kentucky team? No, but after sending UofL packing, the Wildcats have now won eight of their last nine games - their best run since the late seventies. Ironically -- or maybe not -- that was also the last time UofK beat a top ten team, until last night's 40-34 win over #9 Louisville.
A couple of quick observations:
- Kentucky's call for the fans to wear blue worked fairly well and looked good on TV. It wasn't as successful as Florida's call for a Blue-Out, but... well, that carries over in a lot of ways for UK-UF.
- In a long line of epic Kentucky-Louisville games, this may have been the best one not played on hardwood. The Wildcats now lead the football series 11-9, but after four straight Louisville wins - this game will give new life to the UK-UofL rivalry on the turf.
- What's going on in the Commonwealth? The crowd was electric. The players on both sides of the ball are mostly "homegrown". Is Kentucky really becoming a football state?!
- I got ripped in January when I didn't put Louisville in my pre-pre-season top 10. I called them a 3+ loss team. Now, maybe I was a little harsh on the Cards, but after (a) giving up 1300 yards in their first three games, (b) looking mediocre against MTSU, and (c) losing to Kentucky... does anyone want to talk Louisville rankings again? :-)
A great, great game to watch. Kudos to Kentucky - pulling off the upset and winning as the under- dogs cats.
Kentucky looks bowl-bound, but that's as far as I'll go with Big Blue.
Louisville looks... well, I'm not sure - which lumps me in with a lot of Louisville fans. The Cardinals are not capable of winning the Big East - just putting that out there. They don't look like a team that will match up well at all with the Mountaineers.
So... UofL is bowl bound, too, but not in the way that a lot of Cards fans thought in August. Now we'll see what Louisville is really made of, I suppose.
Comments:
bill said:
posted on September 16, 2007 11:55 AM — 65.163.46.9 — link — abuse?
ok,,, lets set somethin straight..... donahue....
this wasnt mediocre,,, by any means. this was smashmout bomb droppin have a beer and rip a whole in ya couch seat football...... I called my best friend 2 seconds before the gun shot...... ready to say i cant believe it happened again
he answered and we both screamed OH MY GOD OH MY GOD For about 28 second and hung up without another word...............blown assignments......missed opportunities...... shoulda woulda ........coulda..... Games over........lots of folks just got cat scratch feverBig Tide said:
posted on September 16, 2007 1:26 PM — 12.208.88.211 — link — abuse?
College football is impossible to predict, which is why it is so much fun to watch, but the Big East crowd needs to relax. They play some good football in that conference and they are improving overall, but all this talk about National Championships and the BEAST being a better conference than the SEC is just completely overboard. Has anyone heard from Diggs the Mountie?
CUTotalTiger said:
posted on September 16, 2007 4:21 PM — 68.59.7.45 — link — abuse?
Big Tide... Lasy year the SEC had the best conference in the land. But PAC 10 is hands down the best this year. SEC has one very good team in LSU. They can beat anyone on any given night. In the East, Georgia is not a good team at all this year. After watching what Troy did to Oklahoma State I realize the Dawgs are in for a long season. When Florida, with a very young defense, and South Carolina are your leaders in the East, and apparently Auburn is horrible as well(Losing to Miss. State is like losting to Duke) you must admit it is a down year.
On a positive note, Alabama looks above average this year. Reggier Herring is the WORST DC in the nation, but a win is a win. And i was impressed with going up to Nashville and winnng there. I am not a big Tide fan, but I will call it like I see it... things are looking good for you!shiguy said:
posted on September 16, 2007 4:46 PM — 71.61.239.60 — link — abuse?
damnit! i knew this would happen now. first louisville just ruined WVU's hopes of a NC (while small it is hard to deny it was still there) for the second year in a row. now we have to deal with SEC fans comming out of the woodwork calling out "SEE HOW GOOD THE SEC IS!" ok big tide point out one point that a BEAST fan said they were better than the SEC. can you find them? no, you know why? BEAST fans (for the most part) are not trying to get above the conferences they're simply trying to get the same level of respect as the others. one loss from an SEC team to one of the BE teams and its all about how much better the SEC is. i can't wait to see auburn chew some people up even after their loses to miss st. and south florida. then we'll see just who is on top. personally i can even see auburn winning against alabama. would it be hard yes. but alabama didn't exactly own last nights game either. so please please get off the SEC is so great. i'm not saying they big east is better i'm just saying everyone needs to stop saying "my conference is so much better than thows" soap box.
just as a little side note showing how people have been overlooking other teams, anyone else catch cincy's success? at this rate i am almost throwing up the BE title as a five way brawl between south florida, cincy, louisville, rutgers, and WVU. things could get very interesting come october.
Shaun Kersey said:
posted on September 16, 2007 5:10 PM — 70.105.142.107 — link — abuse?
I am not a Kentucky Fan. Nor am I a Louisville fan by no means. However I can say this a combination of luck and teh Cardinals not coming prepared to play the "cats" is what killed Louisville. It is a shame too. Louisville had a real shot at a banner season. I was looking forward to the match-up with West Virginia University. That one was looking real good. Now all LofU has is the role of spoiler....hmmm
Seminole Jack said:
posted on September 16, 2007 5:22 PM — 68.47.33.27 — link — abuse?
Here is my take on the Big East vs SEC Debate. Over the years no one can deny that the SEC has been one of if not the strongest confrence in college football. In my opinion it is the strongest, by far.
Now I think that there is phenomenal talent in the Big East (not top to bottom, or as deep as the SEC). Like it or not, the Big East does have a reputation as being weaker than the other confrences. In order for that to change their top teams (West Virginia, Louisville, Rutgers etc.) need to schedule out of confrence games against quality opponents (such as top SEC and top Big 10 and Big 12 opponents) and win on the road if they have too. There is more to gaining respect than going undefeated, IT DOES MATTER WHO YOUR OUT OF CONFRENCE OPPONENTS ARE!!!!
That is my take.
Dead Cardinal Football Fan said:
posted on September 16, 2007 5:38 PM — 74.130.216.126 — link — abuse?
Weel, I am done with Louisville Football after last night. To all Cardinal Fans...UK won the game!! We can't blame the refs or the site. UK wanted it more. However, I can blame the Cardinal Coaches and players. Dropped balls, fumbles and motion penalties are on the players for not paying attention. Trying to throw knock out punches (i.e., long pass plays) and not having a balanced attack for the game (42 pass, 27 run)does not equal a win. Now I am going to have to listen to the redneck, inbred UK Fans for the next year that they are great, Louisville sucks and UK is going to win it all. As talented as Cardinal Football is and how far the program has come, Last night proved that Cardinal Football is not ready for prime time. Last year is now going looked upon as a fluke and the UK faithful is laughing at LOuisville again. THis was their National Championship in football. I hope your happy Cardinal nation. I beleive Jurich just had his first Coaching flop. I like Kargthorpe nd have met him in person. But he is a nice guy, and this state, you cannot be a nice guy. I hate to admit this, but miss Bobby Petrino. Yes, he may be a prick, but last night would not have happened. As improved as UK Football team is, they sould not have won that game. For the record, I hate UK. I hate everything they stand for, their fans and the city of Lexington itself. I worked thier for five long years and it sucked. Louisville is my kind of town, so losing to UK is like the thought of Hillary Clinton as our next President...God help us all. As UK Football fans used to say, I can't wait for Basketball Season. No National Championship this year, No Heisman Trophy for Brohm and No Big East Championship. Fire the Coaching Staff and start from scratch. Sorry Brohm, you should have gone to the NFL.
Randy Williams said:
posted on September 16, 2007 6:04 PM — 74.130.78.203 — link — abuse?
Team Year W L Avg Bowl
Tulsa 2003 8 5 .615 Humanitarian Bowl
Tulsa 2004 4 8 .333 None
Tulsa 2005 9 4 .692 AutoZone Liberty Bowl
Tulsa 2006 8 5 .615 Armed Forces BowlAn 8 and 5 record will not cut it at Louisville and he lost to UK his first year. The Ron Cooper days are back!
Big Tide said:
posted on September 16, 2007 6:33 PM — 12.208.88.211 — link — abuse?
CUTotalTiger and ShiGuy my post was a continuation of the thread Auburn Is Chump Change. ShiGuy if you read that thread you will see clearly that Diggs Mountie WAS putting the BEAST ahead of the SEC and was ranting about how badly Louisville was going to beat UK etc. I have not said that the SEC is the best conference in college football, I'm just responding to what he said. Go back and read that thread and my post will make more sense. With all that said, let's just let the season play out and I feel confident the 2007-2008 National Champ will again come from the SEC.
CUTotalTiger said:
posted on September 16, 2007 7:01 PM — 68.59.7.45 — link — abuse?
Big Tide,
Well, you may be correct about the SEC producing the national champ. But if that occurs that is only because no one will be able to challange LSU. The PAC 10 has several good teams as does the Big East. The BIG 10 and ACC are down..... even though in fairness to the ACC, the three high profile games they lost:
a bad Miami team on the road to #3 Oklahmoa
an over-rated Va. Tech on the road to #2 LSU
an average Maryland team to the number #4 W.Va.in theory, the only team that could beat these three teams destroyed Nebraska this week.
I like the PAC as the best overall this year.
Cape Cod Tom '84 Rutgers said:
posted on September 16, 2007 7:19 PM — 24.60.228.158 — link — abuse?
Post # 13, Seminole Jack;You are right on the money.
If The Beast improves, which clearly it is by leaps and bounds, interest in college ball shall skyrocket.
The Beast still has a ways to go. This is also clear.
Big Tide said:
posted on September 16, 2007 7:51 PM — 12.208.88.211 — link — abuse?
CUTotalTiger you may be right about the PAC 10 and I don't think there's a whole lot of seperation once you break away from the top 4 or 5 teams anyway. Parity has made college football so much more exciting! Bama has Houston coming to Tuscaloosa for our Homecoming game in October and I expect a dog fight. We always play flat for that game and Houston won't have anything to lose. I'd like to see Saban schedule a PAC 10 team for the future as well as a West VA or Louisville. Those match ups are great for college football!
EersAlum07 said:
posted on September 16, 2007 7:53 PM — 76.100.244.95 — link — abuse?
Post #13, Seminole Jack
Out of Conference games do matter, but until you look into the details, do NOT tell WVU fans that they need to schedule better out of conference games when our own damn governor MAKES us play a Marshall. Yes it is a written law that we must play Marshall. So, there goes one of our out of conference games. ALSO! When the Mountaineers come to other teams to get a deal for a few games with them they refuse. PLUS it takes YEARS to get things scheduled because everyone has contracts. AND if you were to look up WVU's schedule for the next few years, you will see that we are playing Auburn, Colorado, and the Flordia State Seminoles! Which you SHOULD have known seminole jack! And yes, Auburn has lost this year and Colorado isnt exactly Lsu or anything BUT you have to admit that it is better than playing teams in the ACC look at how the ACC has been falling apart lately.
So, before you go around saying we don't want to play tougher teams and so on and so forth... Remember there are teams that have and still refuse to play us. Take Penn State for example we played Penn State for 59 years. But they refuse to play us again, just as VT refuses to play us.
thechad71 said:
posted on September 16, 2007 7:53 PM — 205.188.116.136 — link — abuse?
i agree with dead cardinal fan iam season ticket holder for louisville and kragthorpe is trying to be everybody pal its time for to start to get a mean streak because after syracuse there no more gimmes for awhile
thechad71 said:
posted on September 16, 2007 7:54 PM — 205.188.116.136 — link — abuse?
i agree with dead cardinal fan iam season ticket holder for louisville and kragthorpe is trying to be everybody pal its time for to start to get a mean streak because after syracuse there no more gimmes for awhile
GoBigBlue said:
posted on September 16, 2007 7:59 PM — 75.89.129.216 — link — abuse?
UL's problem is obvious. The're over confident. "We're gonna play for a BCS bowl game." "We're gonna be national champions." You LOU fans are too busy counting your cardinals before they hatch. BCS talk! It's September for crying out loud. The article was right - all the signs were there. Giving up 800 yards to their opponents. Oh, BTW what did MTSU (the same shcool that ripped UL for 500+ yards and 40+ points last week) do against LSU (I believe they are an S E C team). Goose egg. Nuff said.
B-4-REAL said:
posted on September 16, 2007 8:06 PM — 66.191.254.132 — link — abuse?
Bill, your post was by far the best on here so far!!! This was a nail biter game. EVERYONE knew that it was going to end up like this. Both QB's are the best that either school has seen in years. CALL YOUR FRIEND ON THE PHONE AND SCREAM, OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! That was great.. I live for games like this one. I stopped my skating session last night at the 1:38 mark and had about 200 people crowded around the big screen tv. I thought the neighbors behind the rink were gonna call the cops. WE were louder in here than the music we play during our sessions! I have partial fingernails left on both hands. THIS IS COLLEGE FOOTBALL PEOPLE AT ITS BEST! I'm a CAT FAN but I don't hate Brohm or Louisville. I just like seeing my undercats come out ahead in the end! ENJOY these games and just hope that there are more nailbiters before the end of the season!
B-4-REAL said:
posted on September 16, 2007 8:07 PM — 66.191.254.132 — link — abuse?
Bill, your post was by far the best on here so far!!! This was a nail biter game. EVERYONE knew that it was going to end up like this. Both QB's are the best that either school has seen in years. CALL YOUR FRIEND ON THE PHONE AND SCREAM, OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! That was great.. I live for games like this one. I stopped my skating session last night at the 1:38 mark and had about 200 people crowded around the big screen tv. I thought the neighbors behind the rink were gonna call the cops. WE were louder in here than the music we play during our sessions! I have partial fingernails left on both hands. THIS IS COLLEGE FOOTBALL PEOPLE AT ITS BEST! I'm a CAT FAN but I don't hate Brohm or Louisville. I just like seeing my undercats come out ahead in the end! ENJOY these games and just hope that there are more nailbiters before the end of the season!
cat-n-10AC said:
posted on September 16, 2007 8:11 PM — 66.191.254.132 — link — abuse?
Bill, your post was by far the best on here so far!!! This was a nail biter game. EVERYONE knew that it was going to end up like this. Both QB's are the best that either school has seen in years. CALL YOUR FRIEND ON THE PHONE AND SCREAM, OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! That was great.. I live for games like this one. I stopped my skating session last night at the 1:38 mark and had about 200 people crowded around the big screen tv. I thought the neighbors behind the rink were gonna call the cops. WE were louder in here than the music we play during our sessions! I have partial fingernails left on both hands. THIS IS COLLEGE FOOTBALL PEOPLE AT ITS BEST! I'm a CAT FAN but I don't hate Brohm or Louisville. I just like seeing my undercats come out ahead in the end! ENJOY these games and just hope that there are more nailbiters before the end of the season!
GoBigBlue said:
posted on September 16, 2007 8:15 PM — 75.89.130.96 — link — abuse?
Hey Dead cardinal...
Why r u ripping your team so bad. You loose 1 game and u'r ready to slit ur wrists. Try being a Ky fan and constantly snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Heck, we tried to give u LOU fans another "miracle in the bluegrass" last night. You were just too busy looking at the first BCS rankings to notice.
CUTotalTiger said:
posted on September 16, 2007 9:24 PM — 68.59.7.45 — link — abuse?
Big Tide,
The win against Arkansas was huge. Georgia is not good this year and you get them at home. Then you to Jacksonville. FSU is average, but they have a week off and it is a home game for them. After Arkansas and Georgia.... FSU will be tough one. I do not see you losing to Houston.
hokie4life said:
posted on September 16, 2007 10:48 PM — 65.6.249.47 — link — abuse?
Good for UK!!! Big East teams may wanna consider concentrating on getting better on defense. I think a BCS contender should have a rounded team. You can't win titles without Defense. I pick Rutgers to win the Big East, because I can't see anybody else that has any Defense whatsoever in the conference. WVU has just as bad a D as Louisville.
hokie4life said:
posted on September 16, 2007 11:17 PM — 65.6.249.47 — link — abuse?
Total tiger: You keep dissing the team that has beaten your asses for 5 straight games! This year at Clemson will be 6 sraight. Who besides maybe USC and LSU deserve a ranking whatsoever? Noone and I mean Noone besides those two teams deserve a ranking because I think the rest of the teams in the top 25 are playing on a level field. I pick USC #1 hands down and LSU #2 definite. And yes, Florida #3 Besides that, hell who knows, as far as I can see the rest of college football is trying to find itself!! Your beloved tigers always start off hot then end looking like shit. So I'm not surpried to see them in the top 25 this early. It's happened two years in a row now. Don't think that squeking one out against then #19 FSU gives Clemson any room for bragging. It's a rivalry and could go either way. Our 1 loss happened to be against potentially the best team in the country. Point is check up and think before you post a thread trashing and undermining the team that owns you!! We'll see who's overrated in early October. Remember last year? Go Hokies!!!
Rtpayton said:
posted on September 17, 2007 12:22 AM — 74.129.69.31 — link — abuse?
@ gobigblue...congrats on your victory over the cards...but I highly doubt the loss was due to UofL looking towards BCS dreams....even if UofL went undefeated this season odds are they still wouldn't get the nod for the NC game....a 1 loss team from a "tougher" conference with a longer history of great teams than UofL would get the nod..since thats the way it goes in college football...
We'll see how the Cats do in SEC play..things are looking like you could be headed to another minor bowl game...the way some of the other SEC teams are playing right now...
Also Hokie what are you on...LSU has proven they are the top team in the country USC has played Nebraska and thats it...but its USC so they always get the nod till someone like Oregon State beats them...thus why I hate the Trojans as much as i hate ND...the Media and the poll voters need to get off their bandwagons...
cock'n'fire south carolina 101 said:
posted on September 17, 2007 12:43 AM — 96.10.98.113 — link — abuse?
its great to finally see some kentucky fans come out of the shadows...what are yall thinking about october 4th? kentucky has not beaten south carolina since our dark ages of 1998-1999 with that 1-21 record of those combined seasons...u think yall can snap that loosing streak against scar for yall...im thinking it will be a big game and im suprised that im saying this because i cant remember the last time i could say that to kentucky...well im gonna be there thursday night cheering on my cocks and if yall pull it off who knows yall may be headed to a bcs bowl
GO COCKS! 3-0 (1-0 SEC) and im pissed about the frigin patriot cheaters but go chargers! (1-1)
theresa said:
posted on September 17, 2007 1:31 AM — 208.47.90.81 — link — abuse?
GO BIG BLUE!!! We have waited a long time to cheer for something other than basketball and now we have it!! Keep rolling along and upset Arkansas..Congrats on your AP ranking of 21 first time ranked in that poll since 1984..
UofK fans remember to go to Pontiac.com/ncaa to vote for the Woodson to Johnson pass for the Pontiac Game Changing Performance play of the week..Seminole Jack said:
posted on September 17, 2007 11:03 AM — 66.147.117.53 — link — abuse?
EersAlum07
I was not talking specifically about West Virginia but the Big East as a whole. There is a perception out there that the Big East is a weaker confrence (true or not - the perception does exist).
Why do you have to play a couple of games with a home and away game. If you are going to build up your programs reputation why can you not play just an away game? You probably have the talent to win against quality opponents.
But here is the current OOC Schedule for this years West Virginia Team:
Western Michigan
Marshall
Maryland
East Carolina
Mississipi StateMarshall aside- you could not drop either of the two directional schools for a quality road or home opponent?
BayouBengal said:
posted on September 17, 2007 11:17 AM — 72.149.254.106 — link — abuse?
Not only is UL's deffense a joke.....but now Andre' Woodson is the front runner to be the 1st pick in next years NFL draft!
I feel for Brohm the most.....since he has no deffense to back up his offense!
UL fans....sorry but you never stood a chance at a Natn'l title....and this was your last chance for a long time....if there ever was one!
scott51 said:
posted on September 17, 2007 1:04 PM — 74.133.153.234 — link — abuse?
Hey, it is what it is. Fumbles, interceptions, defensive breakdowns - not to mention a pretty damn impressive showing by UK and Andre Woodson.
UK won. U of L lost. Period.
As for Dead Cardinal Fan, you really need to get over it. There's a lot of football left.
GO CARDS!Rtpayton said:
posted on September 17, 2007 1:20 PM — 74.129.69.31 — link — abuse?
Like I said even if UofL went undefeated...they would have had to blow out every opponent except maybe WVU to get a title shot...if they didn't then some one loss team with more history from a "stronger" conference would get the title shot instead...thats the way college football title games get decided... sadly no playoffs...unless you have a coach like Urban Myers who raises hell to get you into the game and then is justified when his team took OSU out to the woodshed...
Devon Maestri said:
posted on September 17, 2007 4:22 PM — 205.161.125.254 — link — abuse?
Cat fans can enjoy this win for a long time....like a week. Congrats on your non-conference win. If you are lucky you will win 3 SEC games. MSU beat Auburn, Vandy is decent and tennessee will be hungry since Fulmer wants to keep his job. Next week is heisman candidate mcfadden and the hogs wanting to prove they belong. My prediction: your season ends there. The rest are ranked higher than you. GA and SC..good luck. I don't need to mention lsu and fla. Enjoy the Chick-filet Bowl.
Cock'n'Fire South Carolina 101 said:
posted on September 17, 2007 11:17 PM — 96.10.98.113 — link — abuse?
post 45,
kentucky will kill georgia instead of a close win like last yeer except this yeer its on the road, however as for south carolina even if it was at home they dont stand a chance...they had a good chance last yeer but they blew it and now with a better south carolina team they dont stand a chance
GO COCKS!
EersAlum07 said:
posted on September 18, 2007 1:53 AM — 76.100.244.95 — link — abuse?
Seminole Jack
I would love to have a tougher OOC schedule, sadly that didn't happen for the reasons I addressed in my first post it takes years for schedules to come together if you were to look it up most teams schedules for the next couple years are already completed. Trust me we try to get tougher opponents but the Big Easts track record isn't exactly the best. A lot of teams do not want to put us on their schedule. Hopefully this will change in the next few years as the Big East continues to make noise and a name for itself. Perhaps it will start with people giving the big east some respect.
BayouBengal said:
posted on September 18, 2007 10:08 AM — 72.149.254.106 — link — abuse?
C-dogg (#42)
Yeah, maybe I did get a little carried away by saying Woodson would be the first pick in the draft....maybe I should of said he would be the first QB takin in the draft.
He will get drafted before Brennan....b/c his arm is stronger than Colt's and just as accurate.....and besides his level of competition is better...and that speaks volumns to NFL scouts!
Rtpayton said:
posted on September 16, 2007 10:51 AM — 74.129.69.31 — link — abuse?UofL's Defense is a joke...you don't blow coverage assignments twice that badly...they got lucky with the first one but the second time screwed them....they also gave Kentucky a quick 10 points by turning the ball over on their first two possessions....
UK should not have won that game and from what I saw ...UofL beat themselves more than UK did... with missed opportunities and blown assignments on both sides of the ball...I predict UofL loses at least 2 more games...to WVU and either USF or Rutgers...