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John L. Smith isn't blaming others for his
team's disappointing performance against Texas Christian last week. He's
looking directly in the mirror.
Following a disappointing 45-31 loss to the
Horned Frogs last week, the Cardinals coach attributed Louisville's woeful
performance to a lack of preparation, something for which he is taking the
brunt of the responsibility.
"As a coach, I've never been quite so
embarrassed," Smith said. "We better take a look at what we're doing and
see if we can make some improvements. It's our fault as coaches. We better
get them prepared."
Louisville entered last week's conference
showdown as stale as three-week-old bread. The Cardinals trailed 38-6
entering intermission. Even an 18-point onslaught in the first five minutes
of the third quarter couldn't bail out the defending Conference USA champs.
Smith, who has led the Cardinals to bowl
appearances in each of his first four seasons, attributed the first half
performance to a lack of spirit.
"It comes down to playing with emotion," he
said. "How can you walk onto the field and play with no emotion? None.
They're in high speed, we're in low speed. That's beyond me. The game is
emotional.
"We didn't play a different game plan in the
second half than we did in the first half. You have to execute. We've got to
get our players excited about the game, and that lies with us (the
coaches)."
Louisville certainly didn't help its cause
by committing 11 penalties for a total of 89 yards. However, that's not
unusual for the "Red and Black Attack," which has become an easy target for
yellow hankies.
The Cardinals have been flagged 81 times for
731 yards, compared to East Carolina, which is the nation's least penalized
team at 27-230.
"We're a group of undisciplined guys," Smith
said. "That's not what we preach in this program. Some of us have gotten a
lot of pats on the back and are full of ourselves. We've got to take a look
in the mirror and see how selfish we are."
Denny O'Brien's
C-USA Power Poll
1. Texas Christian
(6-1, 3-1) - TCU leapfrogs to top of C-USA heap with convincing
win at Papa John's.
2. Southern Miss
(5-2, 3-0) - Eagles bounce back with a solid performance against
Cincinnati.
3. Louisville
(4-3, 2-1) - A loss to the Pirates could end all hopes of a
third-consecutive C-USA crown.
4. East Carolina
(2-4, 2-0) - Pirates in a now-or-never situation if they have
plans on a fourth-consecutive postseason appearance.
5. Tulane (5-3,
3-2) - One of the league's biggest surprises, Tulane continues to
creep toward the postseason.
6. UAB (3-4, 2-1)
- C-USA's Dow Joneser should be on the upswing with visit to West
Point.
7. Cincinnati
(2-5, 1-2) - Season slowly slipping away in Clifton.
8. Memphis (2-5,
1-3) - Loss at Cincinnati would all but end bowl hopes in Elvis
Land.
9. Houston (3-4,
1-3) - Cougars continue to pile up points by the bushel -- and
give them up in piles, too.
10. Army (0-7, 0-5)
- Things will get better at the Academy -- but not this week.
When ECU has the ball
Take away a handful of sacks and busted
plays against South Florida, and East Carolina blisters one of the nation's
best run defenses for more than 200 yards.
Attribute that type of production to the
return of three regulars on the offensive front, along with the inclusion of
a two-back set with Vonta Leach assuming a blocking back role.
"The run game is starting to blossom," head
coach Steve Logan said. "We're discarding some of the things that we were
doing last year in the running game and creating some new things this year,
although we are still within our parameters, so to speak.
"(Starting center) Doug White is the key.
People have no idea that getting him back on the field really mattered."
Louisville, which surrendered an
uncharacteristic 250-yards rushing against TCU last week, suddenly looks
susceptible to the run, meaning offensive coordinator Doug Martin will
likely use larger doses of the two-back set. If the run game gets going, it
could loosen a tight Cardinals secondary, easing the load on Paul Troth's
shoulders.
But regardless of how many yards ECU might
gain, that could be negated by turnovers. The Pirates haven't been mature
enough yet to perform mistake-free on the road.
Advantage: Even
When Louisville has the ball
Many experts overlooked the fact the
Cardinals were introducing four new starters on the offensive front, along
with a new corps of receivers. The strains of that transition are a good
indication why the U of L is a disappointing 4-3.
One thing that hasn't changed in the Derby
City is the team's lead jockey. Quarterback Dave Ragone, though not the
Heisman contender folks originally thought, continues to work his magic,
throwing for an average of 236 yards per game.
When he isn't sitting comfortably in the
pocket, he's equally dangerous as a bruising open-field runner.
"What Dave Ragone does that drives everybody
crazy, on third down you'll cover everybody, do a good job pressuring him,
and he'll step through the pocket and run for a first down," Logan said.
"He is one of the leading rushers as well as the leading thrower, obviously,
on their football team.
"The thing that happens over and over, he
gets hit in the pocket and people don't finish the play. You can't get him
on the ground."
For two consecutive years, TCU has shown the
formula for plucking the Cards — blitz their all-star QB. The Frogs sacked
the Louisville lefty six times in the game, as the Cardinals rushed for a
dismal -26 yards on the day.
East Carolina, however, hasn't shown an
ability to get to the quarterback this season. And even when offenses are
forced into a one-dimensional approach, even that limited style of attack
has often been more than enough to get the job done.
Advantage: Louisville
Special teams
Kevin Miller continues his solid work as the
Pirates' kicker, but Jarad Preston has fallen off a bit of late.
The Pirates' punter averaged just 40-yards
per punt last week against USF, and his lack of hang time allowed the Bulls
to set up big returns that resulted in short fields. Nonetheless, the
senior still ranks 16th nationally in punting, averaging 43-yards per boot.
Though Louisville's kickers likely won't
keep pace with Miller and Preston, Damien Dorsey ranks fifth in punt
returns, while Broderick Clark is the nation's fourth-best at returning
kickoffs. That should present a stout challenge for a team that has
struggled of late with its coverage units.
Advantage: Even
Prediction
With a more veteran club led by a senior
quarterback with an NFL future, Louisville looks to be a clear-cut favorite
in a game of upper-division C-USA foes. Interesting enough, though, the
road team has dominated this series since the league's inception, which does
offer some hope for the Pirates. ECU's inexperience, however, and inability
to take care of the football should be too much to overcome in a hostile
environment. The Pirates will score some points, just not enough.
Cardinals 34, Pirates 23.
The
League Race (through 10/19/02)
STANDINGS
CONFERENCE
OVERALL
TEAM
W
L
W
L
Southern Miss
3
0
5
2
East Carolina
2
0
2
4
Texas Christian
3
1
6
1
Louisville
2
1
4
3
UAB
2
1
3
4
Tulane
3
2
5
3
Cincinnati
1
2
2
5
Houston
1
3
3
4
Memphis
1
3
2
5
Army
0
5
0
7
Around Conference USA
UAB at Army
Todd Berry was looking forward to this
season, largely because of his new quarterback, Reggie Nevels. However,
injuries to Army's young field general has spoiled the Black Knights' party.
Watson Brown finally has the offense he
always envisioned in Birmingham. This year, though, he doesn't have the
defense to go with it.
He'll have more than enough to top the
Knights. Blazers 36, Knights 17.
Memphis at Cincinnati
In the preseason, this looked to be a
matchup of two upper-echelon teams. Instead, the loser can all but kiss any
bowl hopes goodbye.
Quarterbacks Danny Wimprine (Memphis) and
Gino Guidugli (Cincinnati) will be under the microscope in a rematch of last
season's game that determined who represented the league in the Motor City
Bowl. Whichever QB doesn't turn the ball over should be victorious.
Wimprine has been the better of the two at
that, but there's just something magical about Guidugli. Expect him to pull
a rabbit out of his hat in a close 34-31 Bearcats victory.
Navy at Tulane
The Green Wave has emerged as a legitimate
contender for one of C-USA's five bowl slots. A win against Navy gets it
one step closer.
Tulane has continued its fine tradition of
offense this season despite the loss of quarterback Patrick Ramsey, who
currently rides Steve Spurrier's QB merry-go-round in the nation's capital.
J.P. Losman hasn't missed a beat and running back Mewelde Moore continues
his mad dash to the NFL.
Both should post solid numbers against a
porous Navy defense. And with an improved defense of its own, Tulane will
likely bend against the Midshipmen's wishbone attack, but shouldn't break
too much. Green Wave becomes bowl eligible, 42-20.
FOOTBALL
