UCF's Offense Misses Chances, Louisville wins 20-14
During a back-and-forth contest, Louisville upsets UCF 20-14.
Louisville came to play and deserves credit for its effort. It was a tough and physical game that saw several drives stopped by key defensive plays from both teams. That said, Loiusville found a way to prevail.
Led by quarterback Malik Cunningham, the Cardinals opened the game with a 75-yard touchdown drive that was capped off by a Tiyon Evans seven-yard run for a score.
Before Evans punched it in, Cunningham’s legs were the difference. Even with UCF seemingly boxing him in, a quick north-south cut found enough daylight to convert a third down and five.
UCF fought back on its first possession by marching 80 yards for the score. The key play was a jet sweep for wide receiver Ryan O’Keefe, as he went around right end for a 27-yard gain. Running back Isaiah Bowser finished it off with a Wildcat formation touchdown right up the middle for two yards.
After trading punts, the Louisville Cardinals drove into UCF territory again. It was the beginning of the second quarter, and the first game-changing play took place.
On third down, a slot blitz by Justin Hodges dropped Cunningham for no gain. The ensuing field goal was no good and UCF took over possession. The Knights drove down to take their first lead of the game.
A bullet from John Rhys Plumlee to Javon Baker moved the chains, and then Plumlee ran up the middle for a 28-yard gain. Three plays later, Plumlee was at it again. A 15-yard gain set up a first down. Bowser once again capped off the drive, scoring his second touchdown, this time from three yards.
UCF goes up 14-7 with 11:31 remaining in the second quarter. Key stat: UCF was averaging 9.8 yards per carry at that juncture of the game. Unfortunately, that was the last time the Knights would score despite opportunities to do so.
Not long after, O'Keefe was not in the lineup, and the same can be said of tight end Kemore Gamble. At that point, UCF's offense was much more predictable and Louisville started playing Cover 0 on the back end of the defense.
The Cardinals were daring UCF to pass the football, but with Amari Johnson already out, Kobe Hudson "Out for personal reasons," according to head coach Gus Malzahn, and Ryan O'Keefe banged up and not playing, the offense sputtered for most of the game.
UCF did have a shot before half, but did not cash in.
A screen pass to Johnny Richardson went for 25 yards. Plus, a Richardson run created a 12-yard gain. It was still all for not as Louisville’s defense bowed, and kicker Daniel Obarski missed a field goal from 32 yards.
That miss really changed events later in the game, but he UCF's offense failed to score a touchdown so Obarski is not alone with the blame.
On Louisville’s next possession, they went for it on fourth down and five from its own 49 and did not convert. UCF was back in business with 2:24 remaining in the first half.
Louisville’s defense raised to the occasion and forced a punt, and that's yet another missed chance to score for UCF. Going into halftime, there were some interesting statistics despite UCF's injuries.
The second half started slow. That’s until usually trusty UCF cornerback Davonte Brown was beaten deep by Louisville's Tyler Hudson for 37 yards. It advanced the football to the 15 yards line.
The Knights held the Cardinals to a field goal attempt that was good from 35 yards. UCF 14 and Louisville 10, 6:07 remained in the third quarter.
After UCF punted after its third consecutive three and out, its offensive yardage total for the half was only 14 yards. Louisville had some momentum and a chance to take the lead.
Cunningham made sure the Cardinals did just that. He took a draw play 43 yards for a score and suddenly FBC Mortgage Stadium was all but silent. Louisville’s 17-14 advantage came at the 2:46 mark of the third quarter, but the other stat that needs to be brought up is Cunningham’s rushing total at this point.
He had 13 carries for 106 yards and a touchdown. Cunningham’s maneuverability was creating havoc for UCF’s defense much like it did in 2021 when he ran 13 times for 99 yards and two touchdowns for the game. Then another backbreaker happened to the Knights.
Plumlee threw a 50-50 ball up to Baker. He caught it and ran it in for what appeared to be a 75-yard touchdown.
Holding on UCF, backing the football up to the Knights’ 15. This is when UCF’s offensive line had clearly shown cracks in the armor, as Louisville’s pass rush was getting home to Plumlee and it impacted almost every passing play.
Again, much of that was Cover 0 where the Cardinals simply dared the Knights to throw the football down the field. The issue? Protection was not holding up and Plumlee looked really uncomfortable in the pocket.
With the UCF offense reeling, the defense was quickly back on the field time and time again. Could a defense with hardly any rest in the second half slow down Cunningham and the Cardinals?
It was the beginning of the fourth quarter with Louisville beginning at its own 45. A key facemask penalty against the Knights gave the Cardinals additional momentum. Slowly but surely, Louisville chipped away until it was third down from UCF’s 18. That’s when reserve defensive tackle Lee Hunter pushed the pocket back into Cunningham’s face and he threw the football away.
It still allowed kicker Jason Turner to knock in a 35-yard field goal to put the Cardinals up 20-14 with 9:45 remaining in the game. While only a lead of six points, that kept the Knights from thinking about another field goal.
With just under six minutes remaining, UCF stopped a surprising fourth down attempt by Louisville near midfield, and that was the chance the Knights needed.
A slant to Baker for 24 yards placed the football at the 19. A few plays later, the Knights were faced with a fourth down and goal from the six. An interception by Louisville’s Jarvis Brownlee stopped the threat.
After the defense held, a punt meant that UCF received the ball back at their own 43. There was 1:41 remaining in the game at that point. Plumlee went to work with Baker for a 15-yard gain from an out route. The drive stalled once again, however, even though Gamble tried to play once again late in the game. It came down to one play.
A fourth down pass to Xavier Townsend over the middle fell incomplete. For all intensive purposes, that was the ball game. Louisville kneeled and the clock ran out.
Louisville comes out on top, 20-14 over UCF.
Inside The Knights will have more coverage of the Louisville game, including press conference comments, on Sunday.
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