Kragthorpe Previews Friday's Season Finale Against Rutgers
November 23, 2009 | Football
Nov. 23, 2009
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LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Louisville football head coach Steve Kragthorpe, senior wide receiver Trent Guy and senior cornerback Chaz Thompson met with reporters on Monday to preview Friday's season finale against Rutgers. The Cardinals and Scarlet Knights are scheduled to kick off at 11 a.m. ET at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium and the game will be televised nationally by ESPN2.
The Cardinals dropped its ninth straight road game dating back to last season, falling 34-22 to South Florida last Saturday at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla., to fall to 4-7 overall and 1-5 in the BIG EAST Conference.
USF's B.J. Daniels victimized the Louisville defense all afternoon, becoming the first quarterback in USF history to rush for more than 100 yards and throw for better than 300 in a game. Daniels accounted for 141 yards on the ground and two scores, while throwing for 304 yards and one touchdown. The Bulls amassed 538 yards of total offense on the afternoon, including 234 yards on the ground. The Bulls had three touchdown drives of 80 yards, and were a solid 9-of-17 on third down.
The Cardinals totaled 22 points, which was the most since a 38-25 loss at Connecticut, but only recorded 313 yards of total offense and had one key interception. Junior Adam Froman made his second straight start at quarterback, completing 20-of-35 passes for 232 yards, including a 20-yard touchdown pass to Scott Long, who tied his career-high for receptions with six for 96 yards.
Senior Trent Guy registered his fifth career special teams touchdown and the third punt return of his career when he raced a career-best 60 yards for a touchdown to give the Cardinals a brief 16-14 lead. The Bulls would take the lead for good as time expired in the second quarter with a 22-yard field goal by Eric Schwartz.
Louisville got within 27-22 when red-shirt freshman Darius Ashley went around the end and scored from 17 yards out. However, Daniels iced the game when he directed the Bulls on 75 yard, 10-play drive, which was capped off by a one-yard run by Daniels.
Rutgers enters Friday's game at 7-3 overall and 2-3 in BIG EAST action following a surprising 31-13 road loss at Syracuse last Saturday. Prior to that, the Scarlet Knights had won three straight overall, including a 31-0 win over South Florida on Nov. 12.
Senior Day at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium
Prior to Friday's kickoff against Rutgers, the Louisville football program will host its Senior Day ceremony on the field at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium and fans are encouraged to arrive early for the ceremony.
The Series - U of L and Rutgers
The Scarlet Knights and Cardinals will meet for just the ninth time in the series with Rutgers leading 6-2. Under head coach Steve Kragthorpe, the Cardinals are 1-1 against Rutgers, including the Scarlet Knights' 63-14 win over the Cardinals at Rutgers Stadium last season.
GAME FACTS - Louisville (4-7, 1-5) vs. Rutgers (7-3, 2-3)
Date: Friday, Nov. 27
Time: 11 a.m. ET
Site: Papa John's Cardinal Stadium (40,000), Louisville, Ky.
TV: ESPN2 will televise the game with Eric Collins (play-by-play) and Brock Huard (analyst)
Radio: Paul Rogers (play-by-play) and Craig Swabek (analyst) will call all the action on WHAS 840 AM
Also: SIRIUS Satellite Radio, Ch. 125; Best of XM Satellite Radio, Ch. 103
Rankings: Both Louisville and Rutgers are unranked in this week's AP Poll and USA Today Coaches Poll.
Coaches: Louisville's Steve Kragthorpe is 15-20 in his third season as the Cardinals' head coach. He went 6-6 in 2007 and 5-7 in 2008. He is 44-42 all-time in his eighth season overall. Rutgers' Greg Schiano is 53-54 in nine seasons as the head coach at Rutgers. He is 2-2 all-time against Louisville.
