Hell in the Hall – Louisville Sports Blog

Short and not-so-sweet summary of this game:

The Cards underperformed for the first time this season–they had beaten the Vegas line every game…until USF.

We lost the game well before the failed QB sneak.  We botched several red zone opps with holding calls  and interceptions .

The QB sneak in overtime….I was screaming to go for it too…but the “book’ says you take the 3 points off a field goal on the first possession.   Particularly if you don’t think the other team can score a TD–as Charlie Strong indicated was his  mindset  in the post game presser.  So, Charlie…if you really thought that– why go for it on 4th down right them?  Why not take the 3 pts and try for the TD on the next possession?

Anyway…can’t fully fault the decision to go for it.  But the QB sneak execution was sloppy.   Justin Burke admitted that in the presser too–that he stayed too upright and didn’t get his pads low and drive.  And even so… our center, Mario Benevides,  stated that the Bulls knew what was coming and had two nose guards and 3 linebackers ready over center.  Seeing that… No audible or timeout….?

Frankly…  OC Sanford should have given Burke that audible option.  And give it to the stud that brung ya– Bilal Powell, who was lined up in the backfield and ready.

Oh, well…

Now, it makes it a bit dicey  to get to Bowl eligibility– only two games left and we probably won’t be favored in either one (as we were in this one by 2.5 pts over the Bulls.)

But… I must keep in mind, as should we all, that virtually no one expected that this year’s Kragthorpe-demolished -wreck- of -a- team could ever win 5 games…much less even sniff a Bowl opp.

And the Cards have been competitive in EVERY game–remarkably.

Frankly, this is a tribute  first to the superb top-to- bottom coaching staff for such a dramatic change in attitude and conditioning of the players…and secondarily to the players and their new attitude and their bottom-line performance on the field.

So…  I still hope and burn like all Card fans for a taste of the  sweet nectar of another Bowl after 3 awful seasons of drought,

but with the improvement already apparent this year,

and with the stellar recruiting by Charlie that is occurring

my mind’s eye dances with  visions of some major Bowling in the future….

Now…

Enjoy  Sam Hunter’s 90+ photos for Hell in the Hall….

http://www.flickr.com/photos/fpos/sets/72157625259480987/

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