By Gavin Lapaille

For the second consecutive week, the University of Louisville football team will enter a hostile environment against a conference foe with their bowl hopes on the line.

After last week’s 38-31 loss to West Virginia University, the Cards can only hope for better results when they take on the University of South Florida Bulls Saturday at Raymond James Stadium.

The Cards are 0-2 on the road against South Florida, including a 45-14 loss in 2005. This time around they may face the most talented Bulls team the school has ever had.

South Florida rose as high as No. 2 in the Bowl Championship Series after starting the season 6-0, including wins over Auburn University and West Virginia. The Bulls, however, dropped their next three games and removed themselves from the National Championship and Big East pictures.

“Three losses, all three times we had the ball in a position to score,” USF head coach Jim Leavitt stated in a recent press conference. “What do you do, what do you say? I don’t know.”

Still, the Bulls figure to pose many problems for the Cardinals. Led by defensive end George Selvie, South Florida has a daunting defense that has given up an average of just over 20 points per game.

Sophomore defensive end Selvie is poised to break the NCAA single season record for most tackles for a loss. Selvie has already broken the school record for most sacks in a season and was recently named a candidate for the Chuck Bendarik Award given annually to the nation’s top defender.

Despite the success, Selvie remains committed to the team.

“I play for my family, for this family, my Bulls family,” Selvie stated. “I try and make them proud. Try and make everybody proud. I don’t want to let my teammates down.”

Sitting at 5-5 and their bowl hopes on the fringe, the Cards will look to avoid falling below .500 for the first time in five seasons. U of L hasn’t had a losing overall record this late in the season since 1997, the last time the team was left out of postseason play.

“We have come up a little short sometimes, but there is nobody that wants to win more than the guys in that locker room,” U of L head coach Steve Kragthorpe said.

The Cards will most likely need to win their last two games to have any hope of receiving an invitation to a bowl game. The Big East currently has five bowl tie-ins, with U of L likely ending up in the Papajohns.com Bowl or the International Bowl should they become eligible.

After winning the school’s first ever Big East Championship and BCS Bowl last season, playing in these lower level bowls is a disappointment for some students.

“It’s a disappointment to go from the Orange Bowl to the season we have had this year,” junior political science major Steven Hibbs said. “I look forward to next season. Hopefully we can do much better.”

Others, however, still have faith in the team.

“I didn’t expect them to do too good this year,” health and human performance senior Geof Thomas said. “I’m an old fan, I’m just glad they are getting on television. I’m not concerned with going undefeated or anything. It’s Kragthorpe’s first year and we just have to be patient.”

The Cards and Bulls will kick off at 8 p.m. and will be nationally televised by ESPNU. The game will be shown locally on WHAS-TV.