University of Louisville
7-1 , 5-1
Virginia
2-6 , 1-3
Jackson Pushes No. 5 Louisville Past Virginia
October 29, 2016 | Football
Louisville totaled 508 yards of offense.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) - Lamar Jackson floated a 29-yard touchdown pass to Jaylen Smith with 13 seconds remaining and No. 5 Louisville survived a frenetic finish to beat Virginia 32-25 on Saturday.
Jackson's fourth touchdown pass kept the Cardinals (7-1, 5-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) in College Football Playoff picture, and couldn't have hurt the Heisman Trophy frontrunner's candidacy. Virginia (2-6, 1-3) had scored with 1:57 remaining and used a 2-point conversion to take a 25-24 lead.
Jackson did not have one of his best days, getting sacked five times and turning the ball over twice, but on the final drive, he ran for 18 yards, hit Cole Hikutini in traffic for 5 yards on fourth-and-3 and ran twice more for 16 yards before hitting Smith in the end zone with a perfectly placed pass over tight coverage by Juan Thornhill.
"I just stayed calmed. Me being the leader of the offense, just kept a level head. We just had to get it right," Jackson said, adding that he knew the stakes: "Everything. Our whole season. We just knew what we had to do."
The Cavaliers had driven 75 yards in 14 plays, getting a 30-yard pass from Kurt Benkert to Keeon Johnson on fourth-and-7 to put the ball at the Cardinals 4. A TD throw to Doni Dowling on the next play and then Benkert's 2-point conversion pass to Albert Reid to put the Cavaliers ahead by a point with 1:57 left
UP NEXT:
Louisville: The Cardinals travel north for its final conference road game of the season against Boston College.
Virginia: The Cavaliers go on the road for the first time in more than a month to face surprising Wake Forest.
Team Stats
LOU 0, VA 3
VA - Hayward, S 27 yd field goal 4 plays, -2 yards, TOP 1:12
LOU 7, VA 3
LOU - Staples, J. 15 yd pass from Jackson, L. (Creque, B. kick) 5 plays, 87 yards, TOP 2:14
LOU 7, VA 10
VA - Dowling, D 9 yd pass from Benkert, K (Hayward, S kick) 2 plays, 28 yards, TOP 0:29
LOU 7, VA 17
VA - Zaccheaus, O 9 yd pass from Benkert, K (Hayward, S kick) 6 plays, 69 yards, TOP 3:34
LOU 14, VA 17
LOU - Bonnafon, R. 8 yd pass from Jackson, L. (Creque, B. kick) 8 plays, 80 yards, TOP 3:25
LOU 21, VA 17
LOU - Bonnafon, R. 10 yd pass from Jackson, L. (Creque, B. kick) 2 plays, 12 yards, TOP 0:41
LOU 24, VA 17
LOU - Creque, B. 32 yd field goal 10 plays, 44 yards, TOP 4:00
LOU 24, VA 25
VA - Dowling, D 4 yd pass from Benkert, K (Reid, A pass) 14 plays, 75 yards, TOP 6:12
LOU 32, VA 25
LOU - Smith, Ja. 29 yd pass from Jackson, L. (Smith, Ja. pass) 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:44
