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3 takeaways from Louisville’s emphatic bounce back victory against Pittsburgh
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Louisville and Pittsburgh both suffered heartbreaking, last-minute defeats last week.
The Cardinals were stunned by Stanford on a walk-off field goal, aided by 20 yards of ill-advised penalty yardage and the Panthers gave up a game-winning 50-yard touchdown run to Clemson’s Cade Klubnik only seconds after they’d taken the lead for an apparent Senior Day victory.
Apparently, Louisville’s players have shorter memories than their counterparts at Pittsburgh.
Because while the Panthers still looked deflated and beaten on Saturday, the Cardinals quickly put their disappointment behind them in rolling to an emphatic 37-9 victory.
Tyler Shough threw for 293 yards and 2 touchdowns and Isaac Brown ran for 93 yards and a pair of scores while Louisville’s defense swarmed Pitt literally from the opening possession in handing the reeling Panthers their 4th loss in a row after a season-opening 7-game winning streak.
Here are 3 takeaways from the victory that clinches a second straight winning season for the Cardinals under coach Jeff Brohm.
Stanquan makes a statement
All-ACC edge rusher Ashton Gillotte gets most of the attention on the Louisville defense. And he’s earned it. But when it comes to performance on the field this season, linebacker Stanquan Clark has, more times than not, been the Cardinals’ best defender.
The 6-foot-3, 230-pound sophomore, who picked up 13 tackles 2 weeks ago in the upset of Clemson, came into Saturday ranked second on the team with 60 tackles. He added 7 stops against the Panthers, including a heavy hit on Panthers’ receiver Konata Mumpfield on the final play of the first half.
Stanquan Clark does it again! His second pick of the day! The Cards came to play! pic.twitter.com/GsGO4OTq77
— 35KYSports (@35KYSportsMedia) November 23, 2024
Clark’s greatest impact, however, came when he dropped back into pass coverage. He recorded the first 2 interceptions of his college career, both in the first half, to help get the Cardinals off and running. His pick on the opening series against Eli Holstein set up a Brock Travelstead field goal. He recorded his second interception just before halftime, leading to a 15-yard touchdown run by Isaac Brown 1 play later.
Holstein’s return doesn’t last long
Holstein cleared concussion protocol and returned to the starting lineup Saturday after missing last week’s game at Clemson. But the freshman quarterback didn’t stay in the lineup long.
On a first down play from the Louisville 47 on Pitt’s second possession of the day, Holstein was sacked by the Cardinals’ Ashton Gillotte for a 4-yard loss. But in the process, Gillotte rolled over Holstein’s leg, leaving Holstein on the ground writhing in pain. He was taken to the locker room on a cart and returned to the sideline later in the first half on crutches, wearing a boot on his left foot.
Holstein was 3-of-5 passing for 51 yards and an interception before leaving. His replacement, Nate Yarnell had a tough time as well both from a relentless Louisville defend and his own receivers, who had problems with drops. He finished 11-of-23 for 96 yards, a touchdown and an interception.
Bell is keeping it 100
Chris Bell has played in 28 games during his 3-year career at Louisville. Until last week, though, the junior receiver had yet to record his first 100-yard game. He finally hit the milestone by catching 9 balls for 112 yards and a touchdown in the loss to Stanford.
Saturday, he hit the century mark for the second game in a row with 101 yards and a touchdown against Pitt. The most impressive part of the achievement is that he did it while only being targeted 3 times. That’s all he needed, thanks to a 68-yard scoring catch and run on the third play of the second half.
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Bell actually bobbled the short toss from Shough, but he was able to hold onto the ball and eluded a feeble attempt at a tackle from a Panthers defensive back and sprinted down the near sideline for the score that extended his team’s lead to 34-0. His only other reception went for 33 yards midway through the second quarter.
Prior to last week, Bell’s biggest single-game receiving production was 85 yards in a win at NC State last year.
Award-winning columnist Brett Friedlander has covered the ACC and college basketball since the 1980s.
