University of Louisville
UAB
Cardinal Football Victorious Over Alabama-Birmingham
October 07, 2000 | Football
Oct. 7, 2000
By JOHN ZENOR
Associated Press Writer
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Dave Ragone threw for 227 yards and four touchdowns to lead Louisville to a 38-17 victory over Alabama-Birmingham on Saturday.
The Cardinals (4-1, 1-0 Conference USA), off to their best start since 1993, converted four turnovers into 24 points.
The Blazers (3-2, 0-2) managed just 14 total yards and one first down in their first five possessions of the second half.
Ragone completed 21 of 29 passes with an interception as he picked apart the nation's second-rated pass efficiency defense. He threw three TD passes in the first half, staking Louisville to a 24-10 lead.
The Blazers had allowed just one passing TD in the first four games.
Louisville's Arnold Jackson caught four passes for 48 yards, tying Louisiana Tech's Chad Mackey for fifth place in Division I-A history with 264 career receptions.
UAB, the league's top rushing team, managed just 38 yards on 35 carries after coming in averaging 193 yards on the ground. C-USA's top runner, Jegil Dugger, carried seven times for 12 yards.
The busiest men on the field were the referees, who threw 23 flags for a total of 229 yards. Louisville, the nation's most penalized team, committed 14 penalties for 134 yards.
Most of the offense came in the first half.
Ragone threw a pair of touchdown passes as Louisville jumped out to a 17-0 lead in the first quarter. He was 14-of-17 for 154 yards in the first half and threw TD passes to four receivers.
The Blazers cut it to 17-10 on a 2-yard TD run by Bernard Anderson, set up by Cedric Thatch's 54-yard kick return, and Rhett Gallego's 35-yard field goal.
Ragone connected with Deion Branch on a 24-yarder with 28 seconds left in the half to make it 24-10. The drive was set up by Michael Brown's interception.
Third-string quarterback Jeff Aaron directed the Blazers' only second-half scoring drive, as he threw a 4-yard scoring pass to Royd Williams with 3:24 left.
Starter Daniel Dixon was just 6-of-16 for 98 yards and was intercepted twice.
