University of Louisville
Kentucky
Football Explodes In Final Period To Drop Kentucky, 36-10
September 01, 2001 | Football
Sept 1, 2001
By STEVE BAILEY
AP Sports Writer
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) - Dave Ragone threw for a career-high 368 yards and three touchdowns as Louisville beat Kentucky 36-10 on Saturday.
Ragone completed 21 of 34 passes, including a career-best 82-yard strike to Zek Parker on the third play of the game, as the Cardinals (2-0) beat the Wildcats for the third straight year.
Louisville dominated on both sides of the ball, outgaining Kentucky 486 yards to 213 and forcing four turnovers to spoil the debut of Guy Morriss' debut with the Wildcats (0-1).
Ronnie Ghent caught a pair of 11-yard TD passes from Ragone, and T.J. Patterson carried the ball 17 times for 72 yards - including 6- and 10-yard scores.
Jared Lorenzen completed 12 of 31 passes for 121 yards and an interception to lead the Wildcats, while backup Shane Boyd was 3-for-6 for 34 yards and an interception.
Louisville, which led 16-10 after three quarters, broke the game open in the final period with Ghent's second TD catch from Ragone and Patterson's two scoring runs.
It took the Cardinals less than a minute to silence Kentucky's boisterous, capacity crowd.
On the game's third play from scrimmage, Ragone connected with Parker across the middle for an 82-yard touchdown to put Louisville up 7-0.
The Wildcats tied it on Derek Abney's 47-yard punt return down the right sideline with 1:27 to play in the first quarter.
Nathan Smith's 36-yard field goal on Louisville's first possession of the second quarter put the Cardinals back on top 10-7 with 11 minutes to play in the half.
Each team then had an opportunity to score from inside the other's 10-yard line, but both drives were halted by fumbles. Smith also missed a 42-yard field goal wide left on the final play of the half.
By halftime, the Cardinals had outgained the Wildcats 269 yards to 89.
