By Andrew Hornback
The University of Louisville football team ended a two game losing streak by defeating the Red Wolves of Arkansas State University, 21-13, on Saturday, Oct. 31.
With sophomore running back Victor Anderson out due to injury, redshirt freshman Darius Ashley led the way, with two touchdowns and 77 rushing yards. Ashley put the Cardinals ahead 7-0 midway through the first quarter, with a 26-yard touchdown run on a counter play to the left side.
“It was great blocking, first of all, especially by the offensive tackle Byron Stingily,” said Ashley. “Joe Tronzo did a great job, and Maurice Clark did a good job sealing the corner. After that it was pretty easy.”
Injuries to junior quarterbacks Adam Froman and Justin Burke also forced the Cards to start redshirt freshman Will Stein. Stein threw for 232 yards on 20-of-39 passing.
“I knew I had it in me,” said Stein. “I always knew that I could play at any level. This year I’ve been doing well in practice. I did pretty well in the spring. And the coaches had trust in me to go out there and get a win. And I’m thankful for the opportunity.”
The defense stepped up for the Cards, recording their first multi-turnover performance since forcing three against the University of Kentucky on Sept. 19. Junior linebacker Brandon Heath intercepted a pass by the Red Wolves’ quarterback Corey Leonard, and ran the ball back for a touchdown, to make the score 14-3 in the second quarter.
“It was huge, and it was a great play,” said head coach Steve Kragthorpe. “I think one of the keys that we talked about coming into the game was we wanted to put pressure on their quarterback. If you let him just stand back there and pat it a couple of times, he’s good. If we got pressure on him, he might throw it to us. And we got him to do that.”
Ashley’s second touchdown came in the third quarter, to give the Cards a 21-3 lead. Arkansas State then scored 10 unanswered points, and looked to be moving the ball towards Cardinal territory for a potential game-tying touchdown late in the fourth quarter. But senior cornerback Chaz Thompson picked off Leonard’s pass.
“I hesitated at first, because I thought he might run,” said Thompson. “But then I dropped back and it happened.”
The Cards ran the clock out following Thompson’s interception.
Although victorious, the Cards continued to lose key players to injury during the game. Junior running back Bilal Powell left temporarily with a knee injury, but did return. However, junior receiver Doug Beaumont left after a kickoff return, with an injury, and did not return.
“It’s just football,” said Kragthorpe. “These guys are fast. They’re physical, big and strong. And they’re knocking the dog out of each other. It’s just part of the game right now. Guys are going to get beat up.”
Kragthorpe admitted that they are struggling to get players healed from injuries, with the time pressure of upcoming games.
Next up for the Cards will be West Virginia University on Saturday, Nov. 7, in Morgantown, W. Va. The Cards haven’t defeated the Mountaineers since winning 44-34 at Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium in 2006, and haven’t won in Morgantown since 1990.
