U of L victory arrived by special delivery
In a game where the offense produced its lowest yardage since the opener and the defense allowed a season high in yards, the University of Louisville football team's 35-28 victory at Memphis on Friday night rested on special teams.
It wasn't just the big plays that saved the Cardinals (3-2), although scoring three touchdowns without the offense on the field obviously helped.
"Some of the biggest momentum plays in a football game come on special teams,"
U of L coach Steve Kragthorpe said after the Cards were outgained 481-299 in total yardage.
Memphis coach Tommy West doesn't have to be convinced after watching his Tigers give up a touchdown on a blocked field-goal attempt for the second time this season. Nicholls State did it to them on Sept. 20.
"Our special teams didn't show up, and that cost us the game, there's no question about it,"
West said.
The Tigers hadn't allowed a kickoff return for a touchdown since 2003 against South Florida -- that is, until U of L junior Trent Guy showed up. His first kickoff return this season became his second career kickoff return for a score.
"A lot of guys said once I got back there, they knew I was going to run it back,"
said Guy, whose 95-yarder tied the score at 14 and swung the momentum in the Cards' favor. "So I went back there with the attitude that I wasn't going to get tackled, that I was going to score and change the game for my teammates."
Guy led the Cards in kickoff return yards last season but was still working his way back to full strength after suffering a gunshot wound in July. Kragthorpe decided earlier in the week that Guy was healthy enough to expand his role.
"He didn't want me to take any shots that were unnecessary too soon and lose me for conference,"
Guy said. "So once I told him I felt like I was ready to go, he made the change."
Johnny Patrick said he lobbied for a change, too. The sophomore cornerback said he guaranteed defensive coordinator Ron English that if he could rush Vinny Zaccario's 47-yard field-goal attempt in the final seconds of the first half, he'd get to it.
Sure enough, he did, and Brandon Heath scooped up the loose ball and returned it 60 yards for a touchdown.
Kragthorpe said the Cards wanted to get a middle push and outside pressure on Zaccario.
"We designed that based on what we thought we'd be able to see and what they'd present to us,"
he said. "… I knew he was a low-ball kicker coming in, and he was a little bit slow, too."
Special-teams plays that didn't result in points proved almost as important to U of L.
Leading receiver Doug Beaumont had only three catches for 11 yards, but he helped set up a second-quarter touchdown with a 25-yard punt return -- his longest of the season.
Punter Cory Goettsche showed some improvement by nailing three kicks inside the 20, with a long of 51 yards. The Cards limited Memphis to just 5.2 yards per punt return.
And Chris Philpott's deep kickoffs helped make the Tigers start three of those five possessions inside their 20.
"Obviously, our special teams improved a lot,"
Kragthorpe said. "I thought we were better in terms of covering, and we made some big plays."
Defense ultimately made the final play to put U of L in the win column. End Rodney Gnat stripped Memphis quarterback Arkelon Hall of the ball, and Patrick returned it 21 yards for a score.
"Sometimes the offense is going to have to carry the offense,"
Gnat said. "Sometimes the defense is going to carry the offense. I guess (against Memphis) it was just a little bit of everything -- defense, offense and special teams."
