Following a crushing loss to Wake Forest at home, NC State football is looking for a bounce back this week. The Wolfpack will travel to Louisville to face a Cardinals team that just fired its head coach. Technician caught up with Matt Bradshaw, sports editor of Louisville student newspaper The Louisville Cardinal, via email to discuss the matchup.
Technician: This has obviously been a rough year for Louisville. Besides the loss of Lamar Jackson, what led to this season’s struggles and the firing of Bobby Petrino?
Matt Bradshaw: There’s not one good answer for that question because there are so many different reasons. The only way we could know for sure is if the players give us an inside look at what happened behind-the-scenes, but that’s unlikely. If I could summarize the problem, I’d say three things led to the struggles: Hubris, lackluster staff and lack of effort.
Petrino was once hailed as an offensive innovator, and that much was true based on his overall solid winning percentage. But everything gets stale over time. The past three years, Jackson powered the offense and his departure proved that he (arguably) should have won the Heisman twice for his elevation of the Cards. Without Jackson, Petrino’s plays and schemes didn’t work and Kirk Herbstreit’s statement proved true that the team was “Lamar and a bunch of dudes.” Petrino’s beginning-of-the-year statement that his offense could somehow hang with Alabama’s is now laughable and proves his hubris.
Louisville used to have a good defense that has now remained one of the worst in the nation for two years. Two straight lackluster defensive coordinators are to blame for that. In addition, Petrino’s son and two sons-in-law were also key members of the staff. There was nothing top-notch about the way Petrino was running his program, and his termination for a clean house was necessary to improve the staff.
Whether the team’s lack of effort was due to Petrino remains to be seen. But the fact is, based on film, there was something funky about the Cardinals’ fire and will to play. This is a young team, but there’s no way a squad with veteran experience (including Bowl experience) should give up 54 points to Syracuse, 56 to Wake Forest, 66 to Georgia Tech and 77 to Clemson. It’s undeniable they just weren’t trying hard enough.
T: What kind of effort do you expect to see from the Cardinals in the first game after Petrino’s firing?
MB: I expect an increase in effort but not much improvement with execution. Pretty much all of the city of Louisville was happy to see Petrino go, despite his being a coach here twice over the course of 15 years. Some players on the team probably share that sentiment, and hopefully the overall attitude can become more positive.
But a football team isn’t just a car you can turn around. They might be ready for the hustle plays, but there’s still no way the Cards’ effort can hang with a top-ranked team.
T: What are Louisville’s strengths and weaknesses?
MB: The Cardinals’ strength is extremely raw talent. Clemson’s coach called Louisville the most talented 2-8 team in the country. While I disagree with this sentiment, there are still some strong position groups. The receivers are among the strongest, even though they haven’t panned out the best this year, and U of L’s field goal kicker Blanton Creque who has only missed one attempt this year. The weaknesses are the defense, as I’ve previously said ranks among the worst in the nation, and running backs who can’t ever seem to record significant yardage.
T: Who are some key players?
MB: I wouldn’t say there are key players for Louisville. The only way the Cards hang in the matchup is if, as a team, they actually put forth the effort to try and keep up. If I had to pick two, I would say Jawon Pass and Malik Cunningham. The underclassmen pair has switched on and off at quarterback, each with their own struggles. If they can somehow step things up, like Jackson proved so many times in the past three years, then the two can show how a talented quarterback has the power to kickstart the offense.
T: How do the Cardinals match up with NC State?
MB: Not very well. I see the Cardinals’ defense giving up several first-half touchdowns to the Wolfpack, then struggle to catch up and get a score on the board on the way to their eighth consecutive loss.
T: What is your prediction for this game?
MB: NC State 49, Louisville 13
