Takeaways from Scott Satterfield's Press Conference

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The University of Louisville football team snapped its four-game losing streak with a complete performance in the 48-16 win over Florida State on Saturday at Cardinal Stadium.

The Cardinals totaled 569 yards of offense, 291 coming on the ground, with 174 yards coming from running back Javian Hawkins, who was named the ACC Back of the Week. Hawkins scored a career best three touchdowns, including a 70-yard run in the first quarter.

On defense, the Cardinals held FSU quarterbacks to 14-of-41 through the air for only 141 yards. Jack Fagot recorded the team's second interception of the season that stopped a possible Seminole scoring drive.

Head coach Scott Satterfield addressed the media on Monday afternoon. Here are some of the takeaways from his weekly press conference.

The Cardinals entered the game on a four-game losing streak, but the team remained focused on turning the corner.
"I think a lot of the little things that sometimes we take for granted, like guys showing up on time when they are supposed to and going and getting treatment, basically all the accountability type things that good teams do on a consistent basis. We felt that early on in the year there were too many things that needed to be tightened up, being on time or having certain players here or there, I am not saying it was the whole team but you have a few guys here and there, and then it permeates throughout the team. I think that the amount of focus that we have had over the last two weeks has been really good. The guys eagerness to get here and want to be here. You can sense it. It is not just going to meetings, but it's coming into the weight room and training room consistently, all of those little things that give you an opportunity on Saturdays. I told our guys that the little things do not guarantee a win, but the last two weeks we have gone out and played pretty well. We are doing the things that championship caliber teams are about. I think that's what our guys have been doing different the last couple weeks. It did not translate to a win at Notre Dame, but we won against Florida State, so we have got to have that same approach, and bring that every single week to give ourselves a chance to win on Saturdays."

In the largest win of the season, the Cardinals were able to get time for a number of freshmen.
"Yeah, we played a lot of young guys. I think games like that are a great opportunity to get guys on the field, particularly there late in the game. A lot of the guys made some plays and did some good things. We got Trevor Reid in at left tackle. That was the first time he got to play. It was really good to see him play. He did some really good things.

"(Jordan) Watkins as a freshman was in there. We threw a ball to him in the end zone and he ended up getting the pass interference called against that. It was good. We saw Lovie Jenkins, we saw (Josh) Minkins in there. There were several guys that got in the game and played. But these guys work hard, too. We want to be able to get them in the game. We talk about trying to play them regardless of what the score is. But in those types of games, it's obviously great in the fourth quarter to get them in the game.
We also saw an old guy in the game: (Jawon) "Puma" Pass. It was great to get him in his first action this year. We talked a little bit about Puma, but our guys on this team respect and love him tremendously, and it was a big ovation when he was able to get in the game and play. He did a great job. He took us down the field and got a touchdown there. He really handled himself great. It was awesome to be able to get him in and see him go out there and perform well."

Malik Cunningham completed passes to a season high eight different receivers in the win over Florida State.
"We certainly try to spread the ball around. We have a lot of playmakers. A lot of it has to do with what the defense is going to give us. But it all started up front. Our offense did a really nice job of opening up some holes, and (Javian) Hawkins got some good runs early. We were able to mix up the run and pass and be very efficient. Cunningham had maybe, what, one incompletion at halftime? That's the efficiency we would have in the passing game, particularly when you're running game is working as well."

"When you're doing that, you're hard to stop. We were just in a nice rhythm there. We had a ton of big plays, and we've been very efficient down there in the red zone. I think that's been a strong suit for us offensively to be able to put points on the board. So yeah, obviously we wanted to mix it up, and if you spread it to a lot of different guys, the defense cannot just key in on one person.
Certainly, our playmakers make plays. I mean, Hawkins had maybe his best game this year. Tutu (Atwell) only had three catches, but they were all big plays. Dez (Fitzpatrick) had a couple nice catches that were big plays and first downs for us. Ford had a couple nice plays as well. It was fun to see a bunch of different guys touch the ball, and they all made plays."

Virginia Tech enters the game with the fourth-ranked rushing offense averagng 291.0 yards per game.
"They want to run the football. When they're able to do that and they control the game, they're a tough team to beat. We have to do a great job of containing the run game."

"What makes them so special is they run the quarterback, and really, it's any of their quarterbacks. They all can run. And they utilize a bunch of formations. Their running back (Khalil Herbert) is one of the best in country right now rushing the football. He's also a great return man. But then you add that to the fact that their quarterback can pull the ball and hit off the opposite side, and now your defense has to defend the whole field."

"The other thing that they maybe don't get as much notoriety with is the play-action off the run. It's a little bit like what we're trying to do. A lot of the zone principles, you're able to run your quarterback and then when you load up, now you got somebody running free. They just do a nice job offensively. They're controlling games running the football, but they're also making big plays with some of the pass game stuff. Their tight end (James Mitchell) does a nice job of catching the ball as well, but obviously I think the strength of their team is running the football, and that's what they want to do."

University of Louisville Athletics

Players Mentioned

Malik Cunningham

Jack Fagot

Lovie Jenkins

Trevor Reid

Related Videos