Louisville Blows Late Lead, Stunned at Stanford

The Cardinals lose as a 20.5-point favorite on a game-winning field goal.

Nov 16, 2024; Stanford, California, USA; Louisville Cardinals defensive back D'Angelo Hutchinson (21) attempts to deflect a pass to Stanford Cardinal wide receiver Emmett Mosley V (10) during the first quarter at Stanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Kupbens-Imagn Images / Bob Kupbens-Imagn Images

PALO ALTO, Calif. - Two weeks ago, the Louisville football program earned a monumental victory against Clemson in Death Valley. Fast forward to the present, and they have now suffered one of their worst losses in modern program history.

Coming out of their bye week for a trip out to the West Coast, Louisville choked away a late double-digit lead at Stanford, suffering a stunning 38-35 upset loss on Saturday at Stanford Stadium.

The No. 19 Cardinals (6-4, 4-3 ACC), who entered the game as a 20.5-point favorite, led by 14 points with just under ten minutes left. Down the stretch, the Cardinal (3-7, 2-5 ACC), who were on a six-game losing streak, scored 17 unanswered points.

Stanford wide receiver Emmett Mosley V, who finished with 13 receptions for 168 yards and three touchdowns, scored back-to-back in the final quarter - with his final one tying the game with 45 seconds left.

Louisville turned it over on downs on their ensuing drive around midfield, giving Stanford four seconds to try and get in position. An unsportsmanlike conduct penalty by Tayon Holloway and an offsides call on Quincy Riley allowed the Cardinal to get in better position, and kick a game-winning 52-yard field goal with just one second left.

Those two penalties summed up Louisville's afternoon, as they committed a whopping 13 - including nine on the defensive side alone. That, along with shaky efforts in coverage, allowed Stanford to put up 406 yards of offense - which was their most against a power conference opponent this season.

Despite Louisville having six sacks and eight tackles for loss, Stanford QB Ashton Daniels still went 22-of-33 for a season-high 298 yards, plus three touchdowns and an interception to CB Corey Thornton. Backup QB Justin Lamson also threw a touchdown on his only pass attempt of the game

Offensively, Louisville had an up-and-down performance on that side of the ball. They put up 432 yards to Stanford's 406, with QB Tyler Shough going 26-of-39 for 270 yards, a touchdown to WR Chris Bell and an interception. Bell had nine catches for 112 yards, while WR Ja'Corey Brooks had nine for 104.

Louisville's star true freshman running back, Isaac Brown, left in the first quarter due to a shoulder injury, paving the way for Duke Watson to have a monster game. He had 11 carries for 117 yards and three touchdowns, becoming the first true freshman to have 100+ rushing yards and three touchdowns in school history.

It's hard to have a worse start on both sides of the ball than Louisville had. They put up just 12 yards on their first three drives, while allowing 88 yards to Stanford on their first three drives, getting down 10-0 in the first 10 minutes of the game.

The Cardinal kicked a 41-yard field goal on their second drive, then after Shough threw an interception on Louisville's second play of the game, Stanford turned that into a one-play, 62-yard touchdown by Mosley.

After that, Louisville was able to fire off three straight touchdown drives to go up 21-13 at halftime. A Thornton interception late in the first quarter turned into a one-yard rushing score by Chaney, Watson punched it in from five yards out after Stanford was held to a 24-yard field goal, then Bell hauled in a 10-yard touchdown in the final minute of the half.

Like in the first half, the offense for Louisville was a little clunky to start the second, turning it over on downs then punting on their first two drives of the period. They eventually found pay dirt again on their third drive after the break, with Watson scoring touchdown No. 2 on a 68 yard run.

But Stanford wasn't about to roll over. After having to punt it twice to start the half, the Cardinal were able to bounce back with a scoring drive in the closing seconds of the third quarter. Not only did Elic Ayomanor catch a 13-yard touchdown, but they added a two-point conversion to make it a seven-point game.

Louisville responded with a five-yard touchdown-run by Watson for his third score of the game, but this set up the 17-point run by Stanford. In total, the Cardinal scored 28 of their points in the final 15:07 of the game.

Next up, Louisville returns to L&N Stadium to wrap up ACC play with their home finale vs. Pitt. Kickoff against the Panthers is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 23 at 3:30 p.m. EST.

(Photo of D'Angelo Hutchinson: Bob Kupbens - Imagn Images)

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