Louisville Overcomes Another Slow Start, Rallies to Defeat Virginia Tech

BLACKSBURG, Va. - Making their first trip to Lane Stadium since joining the ACC over a decade ago, the Louisville football program was able to overcome yet another slow start, rallying in the second half to knock off Virginia Tech 21-16 on Saturday.

Trailing 16-7 at halftime, the Cardinals (7-1, 4-1 ACC) were then able to score three unanswered touchdowns, with their defense also tossing a second half shutout against the Hokies (3-6, 2-3 ACC). It marks Louisville's fourth comeback win of the season, and their third when trailing multiple scores.

Louisville not only extends their winning streak to three-in-a-row, they earn their first ever road win over Virginia Tech. UofL had previous been 0-3 in Lane Stadium, but had not been since 1991.

It was a tale of two halves for the Cardinals, on both sides of the ball. In the first half, they put up just 132 yards of offense, while allowing the Hokies to put up 141. After the halftime, UofL had a 235-yard output while VT could only produce 99 yards.

Louisville had another successful outing on the ground, rushing for 231 yards. Isaac Brown ran for 126 yards and a touchdown, while Keyjuan Brown rushed for 94 yards and two scores. However, Isaac had to exit in the fourth quarter due to a lower leg injury.

QB Miller Moss had some struggles early, only going 19-of-28 for 136 yards plus a touchdown and an interception. Wide receivers Chris Bell and Caullin Lacy combined for 14 receptions for 109 yards, with Lacy hauling in a receiving touchdown.

Defensively, Louisville gave up some plays on the ground, allowing 164 rushing yards - including 85 and a score from QB Kyron Drones. That being said, the Cardinals made up for it by limiting Drones' arm, holding him to 11-of-24 for 76 yards - albeit with a touchdown.

Linebacker T.J. Quinn finished with a team-best 10 tackles, and he accounted for one of the Cards' five tackles for loss.

Based on the first two drives, it seemed the Louisville could cruise to an easy victory. They needed just two plays on their first drive to find the end zone, with Brown putting up an explosive 52-yard scoring run, and they didn't allow Virginia Tech to cross midfield on their first two defensive drives.

However, momentum swung in favor of the Hokies very quickly after a fast start by the Cardinals.

On Louisville's second drive out, Moss threw an interception to safety Isaiah Cash, and that resulted in Virginia Tech's first score of the day - a three-yard option run by Drones. Drive No. 3 for the Cardinals resulted in a three-and-out, but he punt was blocked and rolled into the back of the end zone for a Hokies safety.

In the second quarter, thanks to an inability from UofL to defend the option and RPOs, VT compounded their lead with a five-yard touchdown catch by wide receiver Cameron Seldon. Additionally, their own offense completely fell apart, putting up just 80 yards in their five drives after the opening drive to head into halftime down by nine.

But after stagnating in the first half, Louisville's offense finally woke up after the break. While the had to punt on their first possession of the second half, that was followed up with back-to-back third quarter touchdown drives. Lacy caught a 24-yard strike from Moss, while Keyjuan Brown punched it in from two yards out.

The offense had some trouble landing the knockout punch early in the fourth quarter, but their defense is what kept them from surrendering the lead. Virginia Tech had to punt on their first four drives of the half, with their final two drives being turnover on downs.

With 2:16 left in the game, Keyjuan Brown finally was able to put the game on ice, rushing for a 24-yard score to effectively end the game.

Next up, Louisville will come back home to L&N Stadium for a matchup with Cal. Kickoff against the Golden Bears is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 8 at 7:00 p.m. EST.

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