Louisville Outlasts Georgia Tech in ACC Opener

The Cardinals score touchdowns in all three phases of the game to defeat the Yellow Jackets to kick off conference play.

Sep 21, 2024; Louisville, Kentucky, USA; Louisville Cardinals quarterback Tyler Shough (9) looks to pass while being tackled by Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets linebacker Kyle Efford (44) during the first quarter at L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images / Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Hosting Georgia Tech for their first ACC matchup of the season, the Louisville football program was able to overcome various miscues to secure a hard-fought victory, making plays in all three phases of the game to help give them a 31-19 win on Saturday at L&N Stadium.

Coming out of a bye week, the No. 19/20 Cardinals (3-0, 1-0 ACC) certainly looked far from perfect against the Yellow Jackets (3-2, 0-2 ACC). Louisville was out-gained 410-to-326 in terms of total yardage, committed seven penalties that wiped out a few chunk plays, and went 2-of-9 on third down.

However, Louisville countered these mistakes by scoring touchdowns on both offense, defense and special teams. Quarterback Tyler Shough went 13-of-19 for 269 yards, including a pair of touchdowns to wide receivers Ja'Corey Brooks and Chris Bell. Brooks finished with four catches for a career-high 125 yards, while Bell had two receptions for 82 yards.

Defensively, the Cardinals also got a touchdown when cornerback Quincy Riley forced a fumble that was recovered by defensive lineman Ramon Puryear. Over on special teams, Brock Travelstead drilled a 27-yards field goal, while cornerback Tayon Holloway blocked a Tech field goal attempt and recovered it for a score.

It marked the first time since Nov. 8, 2013 vs. UConn that Louisville scored touchdowns in all three phases. It also helped make up for some areas where Louisville was lacking.

The Cardinals couldn't get much going on the ground, rushing for just 57 total yards on 27 attempts. Additionally, the defense struggled with containing Haynes King at times. The Tech quarterback went 21-of-32 for 312 yards, while also rushing for 58 yards and a touchdown.

One thing were the Louisville defense did excel was that Georgia Tech had trouble running the ball as well. Their running backs ran for just 40 yards and the Cardinals as a whole collected seven tackles for loss. As a result, UofL forced GT to go just 4-of-25 on third down.

For the day, safety Tamarion Nicholson led the game in tackles with nine, defensive end Tramel Logan had a game-best two tackles for loss, and defensive end Ashton Gillotte tallied a team-best three quarterback hurries.

Louisville had a little bit of rust to knock off right out of the gates. The Cardinals had just 72 yards on their first two drives of the game, which included a blocked 53-yard field goal. Defensively, they forced Georgia Tech to go three-and-out on their first drive, but the Jackets cracked the scoreboard first on their next drive out thanks to a 23-yard keeper by King.

Louisville them caught some momentum after the slow start. After a greta punt pinned Georgia Tech on the five-yard line, the Cardinals turned that into a defensive score with Riley getting a hand on a lateral and Puryear recovering the fumble in the end zone. Then after the Yellow Jackets missed a 46-yard field goal of their own, Louisville turned that into a methodical drive that ended with a 37-yard touchdown catch for Bell to kick off the second quarter.

Louisville forced another three-and-out after that, and added a 27-yard field goal to add to their lead, but Georgia Tech wasn't going to lay down before halftime. With 1:56 left until the break, the Jackets were able to march all the way down the field and punch it in from the goal line for a one-yard Haynes score, giving Louisville just a 17-14 advantage at the half.

This slight momentum matriculated into the start of the second half. Multiple penalties derailed Louisville's first drive of the half, to which Georgia Tech then responded with a clock-chewing drive that resulted in a game-tying 26-yard field goal.

Momentum then started to swing the other direction. Louisville was finally able to get an explosive offensive drive together, with Brooks withstanding pass interference to haul in a 57-yard score. Tech was able to get to the goal line on the ensuing drive, but the Cardinals cobbled together a goal line stand to force a turnover on downs at the one-yard line.

Then, potential disaster struck. On the first play of the Cardinals' drive, Shough got tripped over his own feet in the end zone to give the Yellow Jackets a safety plus the ball back.

But in the span of a few plays, disaster turned into jubilation.

After holding Georgia Tech to a long field goal try with 7:05 left in the fourth quarter, Holloway blocked the attempt, then proceeded to take it 55 yards the other direction for a touchdown. The Cardinals then forced another turnover on downs on the next Jackets possession, and were subsequently able to drain the clock and clinch the win.

Next up, Louisville hits the road for the first time this season, traveling up to South Bend for a massive showdown with Notre Dame. Kickoff against the Fighting Irisg is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 28 at 3:30 p.m. EST.

(Photo of Tyler Shough: Jamie Rhodes - Imagn Images)

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