LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – There’s no point even getting into X’s and O’s. In Louisville’s Friday night home game against Clemson, what mattered was the result. And I’m not sure there were any X’s or O’s.
Clemson 20, Louisville 19.
Forget style points. If that’s what you’re after from these two programs, go back to 2016. This was less a football game than a series of unfortunate events.
It was fits and starts. Louisville stopping Clemson in the red zone. Clemson recording five tackles for loss, including a key sack. Both teams combining for 13 penalties, several of them personal fouls. A game of fumbled opportunities — literally.
And yet, with under five minutes to go, Louisville had its shot.
After a missed 50-yard field goal attempt by Louisville kicker Cooper Ranvier that would have given the Cardinals the lead, the defense held firm. Clemson went three-and-out, and on fourth down, punter Jack Smith dropped the snap. As he scrambled to recover and try a last-second kick, T.J. Capers knocked him off balance, and Smith tumbled to the turf.
Louisville had its break — first down at the Clemson 23 with 2:29 to play.
Before even snapping the ball, the Cards were flagged for a false start. The drive went backward from there. It ended with a 46-yard missed field goal and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. Ballgame.
Technically, the Cardinals got the ball one more time. But they started at their own 8-yard line after a holding call on the return — their 10th penalty of the night, totaling 98 yards. That drive ended at the 29, where Louisville ran out of time and answers.
The Cardinals left seven points on the field, missing two field goals and a crucial extra point after a 1-yard touchdown run by Miller Moss in the second quarter. That extra point — clanging off the upright — loomed larger with every possession.
The offense, despite 385 total yards, never found rhythm. Moss finished 19-for-27 for 212 yards. Caullin Lacy, who also threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to tight end Nate Kurisky on a trick play, added 60 receiving yards. Chris Bell led Louisville with 79 receiving yards, including a 48-yard grab in the fourth quarter.
Louisville ran the ball effectively — Keyjuan Brown had 135 yards on 15 carries, averaging 9.0 yards per attempt — but stalled in key moments, converting just 2 of 11 third downs and 0-for-1 on fourth down.
Clemson wasn’t much better. Quarterback Cade Klubnik threw for 187 yards on 22-of-34 passing but never found the end zone through the air. Running back Adam Randall carried 15 times for 105 yards and both Clemson touchdowns, including the go-ahead 1-yard plunge with 7:16 left.
The Tigers, despite gaining fewer yards (308 to Louisville’s 385) and going just 1-for-13 on third downs, took advantage of their chances. They scored 7 points off a second-quarter Louisville fumble — the kind of mistake the Cards never managed to capitalize on themselves.
Even special teams couldn’t save Louisville. The Cardinals allowed a 48-yard field goal in the third quarter, missed two of their own in the fourth, and never flipped the field with a return. In total, both teams combined for zero return yards on kicks and punts.
There was nothing pretty about it. Even the officiating was ugly. The final penalty tally included a chop block, a horse collar, and three unsportsmanlike conduct calls against Louisville — all preventable, all costly.
This was supposed to be a Friday night spark. A blackout game. A bounce-back after the loss to Cal.
Instead, it was a self-inflicted setback. On a night when Louisville had a chance to reclaim the narrative of its season, it missed its chance. Several times.
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