Photo by: Tim Haag | Louisville Athletics
Cardinals Face Short Week to Prepare for Potent Syracuse Attack
November 06, 2018 | Football
Syracuse has averaged 43.3 points per game this season.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The 2018 University of Louisville football schedule has been one of the most demanding in school history, facing the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the Associated Press Poll this season.
The string of tough opponents continues this week when the Cardinals face Syracuse on Friday night in the Carrier Dome. The Orange have won three consecutive games and are averaging 44.0 points per game during that span.
After cracking the national polls for the first time in 17 years one week ago, the Orange continued their climb up the rankings after a third straight win Saturday at Wake Forest.
The Orange are No. 13 in both the most recent Associated Press Top 25 poll and the latest Amway Coaches Poll. It's Syracuse's highest AP ranking since the team was No. 11 when the wire service released its poll for Sept. 28, 1998.
"Their offense is very explosive," head coach Bobby Petrino said "They score a lot of points in the Dome. They have a quarterback (Eric Dungey) we know well. He can run the ball, throw the ball, and gets the ball out of his hand quickly. It's defensively a big challenge for us."
The Cardinals are in the midst of one their longest losing streaks, having dropped their sixth-straight game last weekend at No. 2 Clemson. The Tigers scored on 10 possessions and racked up 492 yards on the ground.
"We have to be able to tackle, so we're working hard on that," Petrino said. "We didn't bring our feet with us and being in good position. We have to take better angles to the football and keep the ball in front of us."
The challenge for the defense doesn't get any easier, as the Cardinals face one of the nation's most explosive offenses, which ranks eighth nationally in scoring offense at 43.3 points per game. The Orange has scored more than 35 points in seven game this season.
"One of the challenges this week is how fast they play," Petrino said. "They will play as fast as anyone we have went against. Eric Dungey knows how to execute that offense and work it. We can't give up the big explosive plays, and get them into third and long."
Dungey leads the Orange in passing and rushing, throwing for 2,001 yards and 13 scores, while rushing for 628 yards.
"He's a tough competitor," Petrino said. "We have played against him the last couple of years and he's a very good quarterback. We have to do a good job of containing him and limiting his big plays down the field."
The UofL offense has made strides over recent weeks, but was hard to tell against Clemson, which is one of the most dominating defenses in the nation. The Cardinals totaled 312 yards of offense, but couldn't make the big play.
Louisville trimmed the lead to 14-3 with an impressive 16-play, 73-yard drive in the first quarter that led to a 25-yard Blanton Creque field goal.
"We did a lot of good things on that drive," Petrino said. "We a couple of good plays on third down to sustain drives, but weren't able to drive the ball into the end zone."
The Cardinals will have to be better offensively Friday night to hang with the Orange and their potent offensive attack.
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The string of tough opponents continues this week when the Cardinals face Syracuse on Friday night in the Carrier Dome. The Orange have won three consecutive games and are averaging 44.0 points per game during that span.
After cracking the national polls for the first time in 17 years one week ago, the Orange continued their climb up the rankings after a third straight win Saturday at Wake Forest.
The Orange are No. 13 in both the most recent Associated Press Top 25 poll and the latest Amway Coaches Poll. It's Syracuse's highest AP ranking since the team was No. 11 when the wire service released its poll for Sept. 28, 1998.
"Their offense is very explosive," head coach Bobby Petrino said "They score a lot of points in the Dome. They have a quarterback (Eric Dungey) we know well. He can run the ball, throw the ball, and gets the ball out of his hand quickly. It's defensively a big challenge for us."
The Cardinals are in the midst of one their longest losing streaks, having dropped their sixth-straight game last weekend at No. 2 Clemson. The Tigers scored on 10 possessions and racked up 492 yards on the ground.
"We have to be able to tackle, so we're working hard on that," Petrino said. "We didn't bring our feet with us and being in good position. We have to take better angles to the football and keep the ball in front of us."
The challenge for the defense doesn't get any easier, as the Cardinals face one of the nation's most explosive offenses, which ranks eighth nationally in scoring offense at 43.3 points per game. The Orange has scored more than 35 points in seven game this season.
"One of the challenges this week is how fast they play," Petrino said. "They will play as fast as anyone we have went against. Eric Dungey knows how to execute that offense and work it. We can't give up the big explosive plays, and get them into third and long."
Dungey leads the Orange in passing and rushing, throwing for 2,001 yards and 13 scores, while rushing for 628 yards.
"He's a tough competitor," Petrino said. "We have played against him the last couple of years and he's a very good quarterback. We have to do a good job of containing him and limiting his big plays down the field."
The UofL offense has made strides over recent weeks, but was hard to tell against Clemson, which is one of the most dominating defenses in the nation. The Cardinals totaled 312 yards of offense, but couldn't make the big play.
Louisville trimmed the lead to 14-3 with an impressive 16-play, 73-yard drive in the first quarter that led to a 25-yard Blanton Creque field goal.
"We did a lot of good things on that drive," Petrino said. "We a couple of good plays on third down to sustain drives, but weren't able to drive the ball into the end zone."
The Cardinals will have to be better offensively Friday night to hang with the Orange and their potent offensive attack.
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Players Mentioned
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