Balanced offensive attack leads to seventh win
Scott Satterfield always expects his offenses to be good, but he didn’t know how Louisville football’s offense would fair in his first year as the program’s head coach. There were plenty of question mark going into the season, whether it was on the offensive line or quarterback position.
Louisville’s offense looked as good as it has looked in the Cardinals’ 56-34 victory over Syracuse Nov. 23. The Cardinals finished with 608 yards of offense, averaging 10 yards per play.
The rushing attack was nearly unstoppable. Javian Hawkins led a running game that finished with 370 yards. The redshirt freshman running back had 233 rushing yards for an offense that averaged nine yards per carry.
Louisville’s offense starts with its offensive line. Satterfield start the front-five had the mindset wanting to run the ball against Syracuse. The offensive line played well against Syracuse.
“Those guys have played really well this year,” Satterfield said. “Coach [Dwayne] Ledford and those guys up front have done a good job.”
The running game wasn’t the only part of Louisville’s offense that was effective against Syracuse. Quarterback Micale Cunningham completed 11 of 20 passes for 238 yards and five touchdowns. Tutu Atwell had five receptions for 152 yards and two scores. Seth Dawkins, Marshon Ford and Jordan Davis each had a touchdown catch.
Satterfield said Louisville’s ability to run and throw against Syracuse helped the Cardinals move the ball.
“It was good to get the running game going again,” Satterfield said. “We had big plays in the passing game.”
