LOUISVILLE — The overcast skies provided a fitting backdrop to East
Carolina's visit to the Derby City.
The 44-20 final score offered the painful punctuation to the Pirates'
gloom.
In a game Louisville (5-3, 3-1 Conference USA) termed a "must win" to
contend for the Conference USA crown, the Cardinals put forth a championship
performance.
Led by its record-breaking quarterback, a resurgent rushing attack, a
short, shifty receiver, and C-USA's all-time sack leader, the U of L made a
major statement against the Pirates: The defending league champions aren't
going away.
"That was a great performance by Dave Ragone," ECU coach Steve Logan
said. "I'm going to send that boy a graduation gift as soon as I get back
home.
"He is quite a football player. He took a couple of freshmen corners to
school, which is somewhat to be expected. We had moments, we just didn't
string enough of them together."
But Ragone sure did.
The Louisville lefty could do hardly any wrong, completing 23-of-32
attempts for 352 yards and a personal best five touchdowns. During one
stretch, the two-time C-USA player-of-the-year completed 18 consecutive
passes, many of which landed in the hands of Damien Dorsey, who finished
with nine grabs for 158 yards and three touchdowns.
East Carolina (2-5, 2-1) threw everything but the kitchen sink at the
one-time Heisman hopeful — but nothing worked.
"You've got to try to mix it up," Logan said. "You can't do anything
exclusive. We dropped and pressured — dropped back and forth. He is an
experienced guy and he was reading the secondary very well."
Though Ragone may have been the headline act, with Dorsey playing the
marquee supporting role, it was a well-rounded victory for a Cardinals team
eager to ease the sting of of a loss last week to Texas Christian.
Running back Henry Miller rushed for a career-high 127 yards on 18
carries. All-star defensive end Dewayne White tallied two more sacks, which
moved him to the top of the C-USA record books.
When all was said and done, the stats sheet heavily resembled the
lopsidedness of the scoreboard. Louisville outgained the Pirates 556-297.
"Defensively, we're just not stable enough," Logan said. "We've got to
go out and put 35-40 points on the board. Any mistake and we're in
trouble."
Though the Pirates committed just one turnover, they never seemed to find
an offensive rhythm. Quarterback Paul Troth completed just 14-of-36 passes
for 211 yards with an interception, while running back Art Brown mounted
just 56 yards rushing on the day.
Dropped passes, several quarterback hurries, a stagnant running game, and
a controversial call late in the second quarter kept the Pirates from
finding the end zone with any regularity.
"It was a frustrating day," Troth said. "I felt like I would get back
there, and I would be a little (off) to the left, a little (off) to the
right. Sometimes it was in the ground. I was reading everything fine. I
thought I was just a little bit inaccurate today."
Troth threw his best pass with the Pirates trailing 35-13 early in the
third quarter and in desperate need of a score. In what seemed to be a rare
occasion in which the sophomore quarterback could shuffle through his reads,
Troth hit an open Richard Alston in stride for a 71-yard gain that set up
Brown's one-yard score.
The Pirates would get no closer, however, as Nate Smith nailed a 22-yard
field goal and Ragone connected with Joshua Tinch on a 32-yard toss to nail
the door shut.
"I think we had the right scheme," safety Antwane Yelverton said. "We
just didn't capitalize on some of their mistakes. We forced a fumble once
and I know we didn't get it."
Yelverton was complimentary of the Cards but pointed out that Louisville
is not the only team which maintains its shot at C-USA's big prize.
"They've got a very talented team," he said. "Both of us are still in the
race for the championship."
Things looked bright early when Kevin Miller's 33-yard field goal gave
ECU a 3-0 lead. The score was set up when Kelly Hardy recovered a fumble by
Dorsey at the Cardinals' 22-yard line.
Louisville answered on its next possession when Ragone connected with J.R.
Russell on a 30-yard scoring toss. The touchdown throw culminated a drive
in which the Cardinals quarterback rushed twice for 26 yards.
The Pirates reclaimed the lead with 4:53 left in the first quarter on
Marvin Townes' one-yard plunge, making the score 10-7, but the pendulum soon
swung back in the Cardinals' favor when Ragone hit Dorsey for a ten-yard
touchdown, pushing Louisville back in front at 14-10.
After a blocked punt gave Louisville excellent field position, Ragone
went to work again, hitting battery mate Dorsey from 18-yards out to push
the Cardinals' advantage to 21-10. It was the fifth-consecutive game in
which Louisville has blocked a punt.
The Ragone-Dorsey combination hooked up again with 3:06 remaining in the
half, this time for a four-yard score.
East Carolina appeared to answer when a replay suggested that Alston got
not one, but both feet inbounds on a pass from Troth. But the official
ruled the receiver out of bounds and the Pirates were forced to settle for a
31-yard field goal that closed the score to 28-13.
With the season now past the half-way mark, a determined Troth says the
challenge facing the Pirates is clear
"We've basically got to go on a five-game run where we've got to win
every one," Troth said. "Not only for conference, but to make a bowl game.
"I'm sure nobody's going to quit. I'm not going to quit. The coaches
aren't going to quit. We just have to go back to work and get ready for
Houston. I don't think anybody's going to quit."
