Louisville Credits Preparation for 'Remarkable' Defensive Outing vs. Wake Forest
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - If someone would have told you that Louisville's matchup against No. 10 Wake Forest would end in a 48-21 final score, you probably would have assumed it would be the latter coming out on top with the victory.
That's not necessarily an indictment against Louisville, either. The Demon Deacons were entering the matchup with one of the most prolific offenses in the ACC, and their much maligned defense from last season had shown a lot of improvement in 2022.
Instead, it was the Cardinals who looked like the top-ten team on Saturday. Trailing 14-13 at halftime, Louisville came out of the locker room and proceeded to smother Wake Forest on defense.
In the third quarter alone, the Cardinals forced an astounding six turnovers, using them to put up 35 points in the process. Not only was this a school record for turnovers in a quarter, but their eight forced turnovers for the game - all of which came in the second half - was just one turnover shy of tying the 39-year-old school record.
"For us to come out and do what we did in the third quarter was remarkable," head coach Scott Satterfield said after the game. "I have never seen anything like it. I have been in this game for a long time. I have never seen a team to have that many turnovers."
What made a performance like this so incredible was the fact that it wasn't just one person single-handedly wrecking Wake Forest. The only player to come away with multiple turnovers on the night was Quincy Riley and his two interceptions, one of which was a pick-six. Not to mention that of the eight sacks that Louisville got on quarterback Sam Hartman, no player had more than one.
Both the Louisville coaches and players alike credit their dominating performance to an incredible week of preparation and practice.
"It all starts with preparation. It started last Sunday," defensive coordinator Bryan Brown said. "The guys came ready to work after a great win last week. Anytime you get a little momentum, man, them juices get to flowing a little bit better on Sundays for practice, as well as throughout the game week. I could tell throughout preparation all week that it was gonna be a good one. I told the guys on Friday after practice I said, 'we're gonna kick their 'you-know-what' tomorrow night.'"
It's a far cry from their approach to practice even just a few weeks ago. Outside linebacker Yasir Abdullah even admitted that, ahead of their matchup at Boston College, Louisville "wasn't as locked in" as they should have been, and even went as far to say that they were "taking (Boston College) as a joke."
Unsurprisingly, Louisville lost that game 34-33 as two-touchdown favorite on the road to fall to 2-3. After that, the Cardinals' players changed their tune in a hurry, and knew they had to be locked in if they were to dig themselves out of the 2-3 hole in which they had dug.
"After the freakin' Boston College game, that Sunday, they were attentive and were ready to go to work," Brown said. "It didn't matter what had happened. I think our guys are being, no doubt, resilience."
Louisville would then go on to win at Virginia the next week, then come home and take down Pitt to go on their first win streak of the year. Both performance were anchored primarily by stout defensive performances, especially against the Panthers.
Not only did the players get things turned around from a preparation standpoint, but the coaching staff also put together an incredible game plan.
Heading into the matchup, Wake Forest's offense was putting up 438.7 yards and 41.4 points per game, anchored by a prolific and efficient passing attack. Fifth-year quarterback Sam Hartman had completed 64.2 percent of his passes for 1,755 yards, 21 touchdowns and just three interceptions.
As well as the defense had performed against both Virginia and Pitt, if they were to have a chance against the Deacs, they were going to have to show them several different looks to keep Hartman and Co. on his toes.
"We talked about this on Tuesday in the press conference -- that we have to mix it up defensively, we have to bring pressure from all different sides, we will have to drop eight at times," Satterfield said. "We needed to continue to do different things, we couldn’t just sit and play the same defense or he (Sam Hartman) will pick you apart.
"I think our defensive staff did a phenomenal job of mixing it up, mixing up those pressures and I think that is why we had eight different guys get sacks. It was not just Yasir (Abdullah) or YaYa (Diaby), it was a bunch of different guys coming from all over the place and I think that confused Hartman a little bit and not knowing where they were coming from. When that happens, you are going to throw into some coverage or you are going to get strip-sacked because you don’t know where it is coming from. It was a great defensive game plan, and our kids executed it."
Now, an already solid defense has positioned themselves to be potentially one of the most disruptive in the country. Over the last three games, Louisville's defense has been holding teams to just 349.0 yards and 16.0 points per game, while also averaging 5.3 sacks and 8.3 tackle for loss per game. Not to mention they have produced 15 turnovers during that span, which was six more than what they came away with over their first five games of the season.
Louisville is just one win away from clinching bowl eligibility, but still has some tough games against James Madison, Clemson, NC State and Kentucky on the horizon. In order to give themselves a chance in these games, the Cardinals need to continue to stay the course.
"In this world we live in, you are only as good as your last game," Satterfield said. "You have got to focus everything you have on that one opponent, and I know it is very cliché, but it is one game at a time, 100 percent all focus on that. What you do in that game will determine whether you win or not. We have been playing very good complimentary football the last three weeks.”
Louisville will be back in action next weekend when they host James Madison to cap off their three-game home stand. Kickoff against the Dukes is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 5 at 7:30 p.m. EST.
(Photo of MoMo Sanogo: Jamie Rhodes - USA TODAY Sports)
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