CRAWFORD | Thunder Over Louisville? Cardinals' running backs bring fireworks to the field | Sports

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Thunder Over Louisville was canceled this spring, washed out by storms.

Turns out the show just got rescheduled — to football season, all over the field at L&N Stadium. On Saturday, Louisville's running backs provided pyrotechnics that Eastern Kentucky couldn't contain.

Isaac Brown scored on bursts of 69 and 39 yards, finishing with 128 yards on just six carries — 21 yards a pop, second-best in the nation after Week 1. Duke Watson, last year's national leader in yards per carry, showed off his receiving ability with a 30-yard touchdown catch. KeJuan "Bama" Brown detonated a 65-yard kickoff return in the game's final minute and contributed a TD run. A 29-yard catch and run was wiped out by a penalty.

Together, they call themselves Zone 6, their nomenclature for the end zone. Their coach, Chris Barclay, calls them something different every time he's asked. The Three Stooges. A three-headed monster. On Monday, he called Isaac Brown and Watson, "Thunder Over Louisville" and "fireworks." And he called KeJuan Brown his "security blanket" and the glue of the unit.

Whatever the name, they're fast becoming Louisville's calling card. For all the Cardinals' offensive assets — the new quarterback, the talented receivers, the scheme — defenses must deal with the running back corps and its expanding versatility before anything else.

It isn't just the handoffs. It's Isaac Brown hitting a crease and finishing runs with power. It's Watson turning himself into a downfield receiving target after an offseason catching passes from every angle. It's KeJuan Brown flipping field position on special teams or providing short-yardage power. Three players, three skill sets, three different problems for a defense to.

Throwing the switch

This is interesting terrain for Louisville coach Jeff Brohm. For most of his career, the quarterback was the centerpiece and the pass was the first answer. At his Louisville introduction, he quipped: "The Big Ten taught me you better be able to run the ball occasionally if you need to."

Occasionally has turned into often. A guy who once looked at handoffs with reluctance now is scheming for ways to include enough of them, and more creatively.

"They've taught me to love the running game," he said at ACC Media Day.

And with this group, he doesn't just have runners — he has weapons.

Expanding versatility

Barclay said Brown looks "a little thicker, a little heavier, a little sturdier runner … able to play a little better through contact." The explosiveness remains, but now the sophomore who already was hard to catch now is even harder to bring down. For a guy who broke Lamar Jackson's freshman rushing records, that's a dangerous prospect.

Watson, meanwhile, spent his offseason on jugs machines and deep routes, refining a part of his game that wasn't needed when he led the country with 8.9 yards per carry a year ago. His touchdown grab against EKU was the payoff.

Louisville running backs practice — Louisville running back Isaac Brown (1) carries the ball during practice as teammates KeJuan Brown (22), Duke Watson (26) and freshman Shaun Boykins (48) look on.
ERIC CRAWFORD

And then there's Bama. Rugged and reliable, Barclay compared him to the security blanket his young daughter never lets go. "He's the blanket that keeps it all together," Barclay said. "He's the glue."

He and Barclay had talked about the need for him to show some breakaway ability in addition to his usual consistency. On Saturday, he showed that with his long kickoff return.

Louisville's backs know the history of Zone 6. From Michael Bush to Bilal Powell to Javian Hawkins, the room has produced NFL talent. The trio lives next to each other near campus, pushes each other in practice, and celebrates each other in games.

The next challenge

That culture makes their production sustainable. They don't care who gets the carries. They care that someone is setting off fireworks.

From the sidelines, Barclay keeps "the odometer," though he says he didn't realize until too late that Watson got only two carries against EKU. There will be plenty moving forward.

James Madison, which will visit L&N Stadium on Friday night, is not Eastern Kentucky. The Dukes allowed just 61 rushing yards a game last season, third-best in the nation, and will arrive Friday night determined to put the brakes on Louisville's ground show.

For his part, Brohm is less concerned with how his talented backs get the ball than just getting it to them. If it's a check-down pass – which KeJuan Brown took in for a touchdown that was called back -- or handoffs to Isaac Brown, he just wants the ball in their hands.

The three accounted for 260 all-purpose yards and four touchdowns Saturday.

Thunder Over Louisville fizzled this spring. But if you were in L&N Stadium on Saturday, you saw the replacement. Instead of looking up, you just had to look to the ground.

Better still, this show doesn't end in a day. Brohm and Louisville hope these fireworks last all season.