CRAWFORD | Miller Moss didn't just make his first Louisville start. He got to enjoy it | Sports

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — He came from a place where glamor is currency, where palm trees line the practice field and where a big hit is a blockbuster movie, not a linebacker in your chest.

On Saturday in Louisville, Miller Moss took his first snap in a new zip code. And football looked fun again.

He stood in the pocket. He ran for a touchdown. He threw another. And then he took off his helmet in the second half and smiled like a guy who didn’t have to carry the weight of the Pacific Coast on his shoulders anymore. Like a guy who got to enjoy the moment and not just survive it.

Granted it was a 51-17 blowout of EKU that gave him the whole second half to soak it in. He didn’t waste it.

“It felt great,” Moss said. “It’s a really, really cool game day atmosphere from Card March all the way through the game to Joker and the Thief between the third and fourth quarter. A lot of really cool traditions that were awesome to be a part of for the first time.”

They don’t play Joker and the Thief at the Coliseum. They don’t huddle much, either. But here in Brohm Country, Moss is getting the full experience. The cadence. The culture. And the comfort of a run game that could carry a Volkswagen across a mountain range.

He only played half the game, but in that half he looked like the quarterback Louisville hoped it had found when it pulled him out of the portal like a prize fish from the Pacific.

He completed 17-of-25 passes. Two touchdowns. Two picks, though neither felt like a mortal sin. One was a deflection. The other was a juggling act.

Still, Jeff Brohm had seen enough. And more importantly, he’d liked what he’d seen.

“I don't ever believe in running up score on anybody,” Brohm said. “But we had a good first half. Those guys got a lot of action. They showed what we needed to show. ... From there, let's not just try to rack up stats and then get somebody hurt. That would be foolish.”

Foolish, indeed. Especially with a Friday-night game looming. Especially when your quarterback has already shown you he’s something more than a stat line.

Even Nick Saban seemed to think so. On ESPN’s College GameDay that morning, when the panel was asked to name the most promising combinations created by the transfer portal, Saban went with Moss and Brohm — citing the former’s USC pedigree and the latter’s quarterback track record. He even noted he’d once tried to hire Brohm at Alabama.

Louisville quarterback Miller Moss after a second-quarter touchdown run, takes a moment to enjoy the cheers in the Cardinals' season-opening win over EKU.
ERIC CRAWFORD

Brohm hadn’t seen the segment, but appreciated the recognition.

“Of course, Coach Saban's one of the greatest ever to do it,” he said. “He's won a ton of championships. Coaches football the right way. ... Of course, Miller is our quarterback, and I think he's got really good experience and talent, and played very efficient today. The games will get tougher and he'll have to continue to be accurate, make throws, and be able to make some off-rhythm throws and decisions, and that's where he's got to show that he can do. If he does that, he'll have a chance to play beyond.”

On Saturday, Moss was what he needed to be. Not just sharp, but steady. Calm. Communicative. The kind of quarterback who talks with his offensive coordinator during the game, and his running backs coach when he’s not in it.

“I was talking with (running backs) Coach (Chris) Barclay about this on the sideline,” Moss said. “Just in terms of the situation that I was in last year and what was put on the quarterback in that offense. And then coming over to Coach Brohm’s system and having, you know, a really, really good run game. I think Isaac (Brown) and Duke (Watson) and Bama (KeJuan Brown) , honestly, are the most talented running backs I’ve ever been around.”

That’s no small thing. Moss is a California quarterback — he’s seen stars. But it turns out, Isaac Brown doesn’t need Hollywood. He had 126 yards on six carries and scored on gallops of 39 and 68 yards. At times, he looked like he’d been ejected from a starting block.

“I've never really played with a running back where he gets a step and you know no one's going to tackle him,” Moss said. “So that was pretty cool to witness and be a part of.”

Cool. Yes. Useful? Even more so.

Because Moss is still learning the Brohm system. He wants to get to the point where he knows what the play call is before Brohm calls it in. And he might get there, fast, especially if defenses are forced to stack the box just to chase a track team in the backfield.

“The touchdown pass to Duke was play action, so obviously the respect that defenses have to have for the run game and the bodies that they have to put in the box, I think really opens things up on the outside,” Moss said. “Because if you have to play one high and put eight guys in the box ... there’s going to be one-on-one coverage. There’s going to be free access on the outside. And I think we have the guys to win out there too.”

He’s not wrong. Moss completed passes to six different players, converted both third-down passes he threw, and engineered five scoring drives on his first five possessions.

“I think the receiver room is super talented,” he said. “I think you kind of got a glimpse of that today. Obviously, you know, if we were able to, we would have loved to play the full game, but I think we got a really good half in. ... But I'm happy with how the offense is coming together.”

And for what it’s worth, the stuff that tends to go wrong when a new QB arrives — fumbled exchanges, busted plays, delayed calls — never showed up.

“He’s a smart guy,” said quarterbacks coach and co-offensive coordinator Brian Brohm. “He’s big on extra work, extra video, extra meetings. He’s putting in the time.”

If you don’t notice those things, there’s a reason. Someone worked hard to make sure they weren’t issues.

And for Moss, who’s seen his family lose its home to wildfire, who left Hollywood for humidity, who used to play where the sky was always blue and the quarterback always under fire, Saturday brought something rare.

A chance to sit back, just for a bit, and enjoy it.