Louisville Mounts Fourth Quarter Comeback at Pitt to Remain Undefeated

This story will be updated.

PITTSBURGH - While they might not have passed with flying colors, the Louisville football program has passed their first true test of the 2025 season.

Making the trek up to the Steel City for their ACC opener against Pitt, the Cardinals were able to scrap together a comeback effort following an inauspicious start, leaving Acrisure Stadium with a 34-27 victory over the Panthers on Saturday to remain undefeated.

Louisville (4-0, 1-0 ACC) dug themselves into a 17-point hole after an abysmal first quarter, and entered the fourth quarter trailing by 10. However, they outscored Pitt (2-2, 0-1 ACC) 34-10 after the opening period, and scored the final 17 points.

Louisville secures their first road win at Pitt as members of the ACC, snapping a three-game losing streak in such games. It's the Cardinals' first win in Pittsburgh since since a 45-35 decision over the Panthers back on Oct. 13, 2012, when both schools were in the Big East.

QB Miller Moss overcame some early struggles, including a pick-six, to finish 33-of-51 for the day for 339 yards and three touchdowns. Lacy finished with nine catches for 95 yards, while wide receiver Chris Bell had 10 receptions for 135 yards (both career-highs).

Louisville put up 392 yards of offense despite only rushing for 53 yards. Running back Duke Watson ran for 47, while star tailback Isaac Brown had just 20. The Cardinals' offensive line struggled to blaze open consistent rushing lanes, allowing 10 tackles for loss on the afternoon.

Defensively, Pitt was held to just 339 yards, including only 80 on the ground and just 1-for-10 on third downs plus 1-of-4 on fourth downs.

QB Eli Holstein went 14-of-26 for 228 yards and two touchdowns, but also two interceptions. The Cardinals had three picks on the day: two from Quinn and another from linebacker Antonio Watts. Defensive end A.J. Green also forced a fumble, and the defense as a whole had five pass breakups.

It's hard to have a worse start on both sides of the ball than Louisville did on Saturday. Defensively, the Cardinals were on shaky footing right out of the gates, allowing a 30-yard field goal and a 39-yard touchdown reception by former Card Cataurus Hicks.

Offensively, poor offensive line play forced UofL to have to punt on their first two drives. Then on their third time out, Moss threw a 75-yard pick-six to Panthers linebacker Rasheem Biles, making it a 17-0 deficit just over 12 minutes into the game.

But in the second quarter, Louisville was able to generate momentum and get back in the game.

They took advantage of a muffed punt by the Panthers, which led to Moss punching it in from a yard out on a QB keeper. On their next drive, Ranvier connected on a 35-yard field goal to make it a one-score game.

After the shaky start by the defense, the Cardinals then force three-straight three-and-outs, including Pitt's punter fumbling the snap on the third stop. This put UofL in great position to tie the game, and Moss took advantage, finding Bell for a 25-yard score on the first play to tie game.

While Louisville did make it a game, it was Pitt that went into the locker room with the halftime momentum.

Assisted by Cardinals penalties, the Panthers were able to cobble together a drive that ended with a 37-yard field goal. Then after UofL went three-and-out, clock mismanagement gave Pitt one last gasp before the half. They took advantage of a coverage bust, with Raphael Williams scoring on a 38-yard reception to make it 27-17 at the break.

When the two teams returned to action, unsurprisingly, defense continued to rule the day.

Nick Keller tied his school-record with a 57-yard field goal on the first drive of the half, but that was the only points scored in the third quarter. He tried a 56-yarder on the next drive, but it fell short, then Louisville had to punt on their next time out as well. As for Pitt, their two third quarter drives ended with a three-and-out, and a goal line interception by Watts.

In the fourth quarter, Louisville took over the game on both sides of the ball, allowing them to be able to complete the comeback. They put 107 yards of offense in this period alone, while Pitt could only muster 23, even going as far to benching Holstein for their final couple drives.

Over the final five defensive drives, Louisville logged three interceptions - including a second by Quinn to ice the game - as well as a pair of turnovers on down.

Next up, Louisville returns to L&N Stadium to take on Virginia in their first home ACC game of the season. Kickoff against the Cavaliers is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 4 at 3:30 p.m. EST.

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