Malik Cunningham, Louisville Offense Take Step Forward Against UCF

While they weren't perfect, the Cardinals' offense - as well as their figurehead on that side of the ball - looked much better in their matchup against the Knights.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Over the course of the Scott Satterfield era, the Louisville football program has established an identity of being a prolific offensive team. Despite various ups and down, the Cardinals have posted a top-30 offense in terms of yardage in each of their first three years under Satterfield.

In the season-opener of year four, Louisville's offense looked far from what it has largely resembled since 2019.

That side of the ball against Syracuse, outside of one drive in the first quarter, failed to establish any sort of rhythm whatsoever. From the pass catchers to the offensive line, and even with quarterback Malik Cunningham, the Cardinals were incredibly disjointed, contributing to a 31-7 loss up at the JMA Wireless Dome.

While they weren't perfect, and didn't take as big of a step forward as their defensive counterpart, the Louisville offense looked much better in their Friday night showdown against UCF, helping contribute to a 20-14 win at the Bounce House.

Related: Defensive Effort Fuels Louisville's Road Win Over UCF

"The name of the game is to score points. We got to find ways to get in the end zone. You don't want to settle for field goals," Satterfield said after the win. "But again, I think this is a good defense. We did move the ball better tonight. I don't know what our yards was, but we moved the ball better. We got some other guys involved in the offense as well. That's what we got to keep doing, and hopefully we can find a way in the end zone."

A week after putting up just 334 yards against the Orange, the Cardinals increased that mark to 421 against the Knights. A lot of that increase of production was because of quarterback Malik Cunningham, both in terms of his actual on-field performance, and how Louisville utilized him.

Over the offseason, the coaching staff placed an emphasis on Cunningham growing as a pocket passer. Against Syracuse, not only did the veteran signal caller appear to key on wide receiver Tyler Hudson too much, but looked incredibly hesitant to run despite several opportunities to pick up yards and put the offense in a better position.

Ahead of the UCF matchup, the coaching staff told Cunningham that, while they want him to continue making strides as a passer, they were going to utilize him in the manner that had made him successful in the past: a healthy balance of both using his arm and his legs.

"I'll take the blame on that. I think the first game, we didn't let him play his game enough, and I think tonight we did," Satterfield said. "Go back and you watch the (film from) Central Florida last year, I think he had 99 yards rushing last year against them, and played really well.

"This week we were like, 'Malik, we're gonna have to ride you,' and he said, 'coach, that's what I want.' There was a lot for him to put on his shoulders, and every time he came to the sideline, he was like, "Coach, I got it. Let's go." He runs hard, he played tough. He was a difference as far as just the tough, gritty yards that we needed to get."

The slight shift offensive approach produced mostly positive results. While Cunningham did have a pedestrian game through the air, going 14-of-29 with 195 yards and no touchdowns, he did a much better job spreading the ball out. Tight end Marshon Ford, Braden Smith and Ahmari Huggins-Bruce each had six targets, Tyler Hudson had five and Dee Wiggins had three. Tight end Dez Melton and running back Tiyon Evans each had one, as well.

The more spread out attack through the air also allowed the run game to be a lot more dangerous against UCF. Louisville ran for 226 yards against the Knights, thanks in large part to Cunningham, as he picked up 121 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries. 

"It just opened up the whole offense, for sure," Cunningham said after the game about his ability to run the ball. "It adds another dimension to our offense. We got quick running backs, so adding my legs and my arm is kind of what we've been relying on last few years."

Evans had another good game on the ground, totaling 75 yards and a score on 19 carries. Jalen Mitchell and Jawhar Jordan combined for 36 yards on six runs.

The offense does have some kinks to work out still. Evans lost a fumble on a run which was one tackler away from being a free touchdown run, the offense went just 1-for-3 on fourth down conversions - including one around midfield late in the fourth quarter while clinging to a six-point lead - Cunningham needs to have a better performance in terms of pure completion percentage, and the offensive line hasn't looked as dominant as we expected them to be.

However, that side of the ball is still very high on their cohesiveness as a unit. They believe they have the camaraderie and chemistry to be able to overcome these issues, and vault their offense to the next level.

"I feel like we have a good chemistry going on with our offense," Evans said. "I just feel like sometimes, we're not getting off the ball fast enough. or we start slow. But once we get it going, this offense is dangerous. Honestly, we didn't even play our best game right now. That's not what we're capable of."

Louisville's road trip does come to and end with the win, but their home-opener next week doesn't get any easier. The Cardinals will be under the lights and in primetime yet again, this time hosting Florida State, who is fresh off of a win against LSU in New Orleans.

The Noles get a lot of time off ahead of the showdown, but the Cardinals do get a normal week of preparation, and are hoping to parlay their newfound confidence into success against FSU.

"The good thing is, we get a normal week even though it's Friday night," Satterfield said. "We get a normal seven day turnaround, not a short week, it's gonna be big for us as well. And we get to stay at home and get to play in Cardinal Stadium. That's another huge thing for us."

(Photo of Malik Cunningham: Mike Watters - USA TODAY Sports)

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