Cards Hope Offensive Success Continues in Marquee Match-up
September 13, 2016 | Football
Cards have huge challenge versus No. 2 Florida State
Back in August, University of Louisville head football coach Bobby Petrino had a promise for the sold-out crowd at the Annual Football Kickoff Luncheon at the Marriott Downtown.
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He told them that his team would try to light up the scoreboard like his teams did from 2003-06 when the Cards were one of the most explosive offenses in the nation – leading the nation in total offense and scoring in 2004 and finishing perennially in the top 10.
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Heading into a top-10 showdown with No. 2 Florida, No. 10 Louisville is back atop the national offensive rankings – leading the nation in scoring offense (66.0 ppg.) and total offense (754.0 ypg.) after two games.
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The Cardinals put on a show for the record books last weekend at Syracuse, totaling a school-record 845 yards of total offense and 414 yards rushing in a 62-28 win over the Orange to open ACC play.
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"Your focus is like it is every week," co-offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Chris Klenakis said. "Your techniques, your fundamentals, being sharp on your executions and your assignment. That's what you work on every week."
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Sharp is certainly a word to describe the UofL offense, but sensational is what comes to mind when talking about sophomore quarterback Lamar Jackson, who has accounted for an average of 507.0 yards of total offense this season – including an ACC record 610 yards last week versus Syracuse.
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Klenakis, who is in his first year leading the offense, feels Jackson has picked up all the intricacies of the game, which has benefitted the entire offense.
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"Well, I think Lamar did a good job of reading things, Klenakis said. "He gave it to the running back when he should have handed it to the running back, and that caused some big runs. He was able to pull it and the guys did a great job of blocking on the perimeter and letting him get some space and use his abilities from there."
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Part of the chess game in a match-up of this magnitude is trying to figure out how the Seminoles will try and limit the big-lay ability of Jackson, and Klenakis doesn't worry about the opponent – he wants his offense to continue to operate on a high level.
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I don't know what their plans is. Really what we have to do is we have to worry about ourselves," Klenakis said. "We have to worry about getting better – with our fundamentals, our technique, our execution, and just getting better at everything we do. I've always believed that if you take care of yourself, good things will happen."
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With the entire nation looking at Louisville this weekend, ESPN's College GameDay in attendance and a national audience on ABC, the hype is at an all-time high, but don't tell senior running back Brandon Radcliff.
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"I didn't know it was hype," Radcliff said. "I just thought it was a regular game to me, honestly. "Y'all say it's hype, then it's hype, but we are just taking it one day at time, a game at a time. I mean, they're just the next opponent on this road to what we're trying to get to."
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That next opponent is none other than perennial ACC-power Florida State, who has been to the playoffs and have dominated college football for decades.
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The 'Noles have one of the athletic, fast defenses in the nation, led by DeMarcus Walker, who leads the nation in sacks with 4.5.
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"They have a great defense. They're well coached and we are going to have to come and play for four quarters," said offensive lineman Tobijah Hughley
