By Charlie Leffler
Let the marquees read: Italian Gunners II.
No, it’s not a prizefight or a Godfather sequel. However, many might think it is when the two Italian gunners meet Thursday night in Papa John’s Stadium. And it is only fitting that the Italian face off will come in a stadium named after a pizza business. But no matter how you slice it, when Louisville’s Dave Ragone and Cincinnati’s Gino Guidugli face off in the ESPN game, it will be a match-up of the two best quarterbacks on Conference USA.
Ragone is the old man in the league. With back to back conference titles and Offensive Player of the Year awards, he is in the position that others aspire to reach.
Guidugli is the new kid on the block and one of the old men at the same time. Strangely, while the Bearcat leader is only a true sophomore, as a C-USA quarterback, Ragone is the only player who exceeds him in experience.
“It’s silly,” said Guidugli, “Dave Ragone’s the oldest one then you look around the league and I’m the next one.”
However, no one is going to be taken in by Guidugli youthful age or appearance. The UC quarterback is a man when he takes the field and he stands neck and neck with Ragone in nearly every C-USA statistical category. Ragone leads the league in total offense and passing efficiency. Guidugli is second. Guidugli is first in passing average per game while Ragone is second. More amazing is that as a result of Gino’s arm, Cincinnati has three different receivers among Conference USA’s top ten in receptions per game.
“Oh, he’s a good player,” said Louisville head coach John L. Smith. “They get the ball out of his hands and don’t give you a chance to sack a lot, so you’ve got to cover some guys.”
In fact, Smith said Cincinnati’s offense should appear very familiar to Cardinal fans. “They actually look like we used to look,” Smith said with more than a hint of sarcasm alluding to Louisville’s offensive woes this season. “They throw it around. They throw the quick gain.”
Ironically, coming out of high school, Guidugli was very close to be a Cat of a different color. The Ft. Thomas Highlands’ player originally signed with the University of Kentucky. But when the Wildcat football program fell under NCAA investigation, Gino was released from his letter of intent and allowed to go to Cincinnati instead. He never regretted his decision. While UK went 2-8 last season, Guidugli took the reigns of the Bearcat team and led them to the Motor City Bowl.
As a freshman, Guidugli did not play until the second game of the season when starting quarterback Adam Hoover suffered a season ending knee injury. Guidugli finished the season in the UC record book ranked second in career completion percentage and touchdown to interception margin. Despite missing one game, Gino ranks fourth or higher in nearly every category of single season passing records.
“God blessed me that day when Hal Mumme got fired,” said Guidugli. “He put me in a spot where I could excel and I have to give praise to the Lord for where I’m at now. Without him I might be at Kentucky.”
Though Cincinnati came into the season expecting to compete for the C-USA crown, they fell on hard times. After nearly knocking off then No. 6 ranked Ohio State, the Bearcats dropped three of their next four games. However, during that stretch Guidugli was recovering from a leg injury.
Back at full strength a week ago, Gino pasted Memphis with a 48-10 score.Because of their talent and a few bad breaks, UC is a team with a very deceptive record. Likewise, when the Louisville coaches prepare for opponents they rarely look at team records. Instead they concentrate of game tapes and how the opponent plays. Therefore, Smith was genuinely astonished when told the Bearcats record this season. “3-5? They’re 3-5?” Smith gaped. “That shocks me. I had no clue. I would have guessed they were 5-3.” Smith’s confusion is understandable. Statistically Cincinnati is near the top of nearly every category in Conference USA.
The one that should concern the Cardinals the most is an area where they’ve had problems; hanging on to the ball. Cincinnati has not one, but two players among the conference’s best at causing fumbles. Antwan Peek leads C-USA with five while Zach Norton comes in seventh with two.
Catching players in the backfield has been Louisville defensive lineman Dewayne White’s specialty. However, as a team UC is better. In the conference, White comes in fifth in tackles for a loss and he is the only Cardinal among the top ten. Cincinnati owns positions seven through nine. Peek, Jamar Enzor and Tyjaun Hagler each average 1.5 tackles for a loss per game.
And if that isn’t enough to grab Louisville’s attention, there is one set of numbers that will. Cincinnati 36, TCU 29. The Bearcats are the only team in the nation who has been capable of defeating the Horned Frogs this season.
Though Cincinnati is most likely out of the picture for the conference title, they are still in position to return to a bowl for the third straight year. Therefore, beating Louisville is a primary objective of the Bearcats. And despite their record, with Guidugli at the helm they are very capable of doing just that. “They’re doing the same thing they’ve been doing,” said Smith, “they’re just doing it better. Gino’s a year older. A year more comfortable.”
