Analyzed Sports | S.K. Patrick

In one of the most bizarre games, you’ll ever see in Louisville, KY. brought the rain while the Louisville Cardinals brought the pain in the second half for a 31-7 victory. The Louisville football team’s home opener  was delayed three times in the first quarter due to weather.

The game was first delayed from 7:18-8:08 p.m. with lightning in the area. Then lightning struck again at 8:12 to put the game back in a delay. The players took the field again at 9:22. After the last delay, the game resumed at 10:05 after a 33-minute stoppage. The game ended at 12:40 a.m. Sunday.

The game as you can imagine with the delays ruined the flow as neither team could get any offense going in the first half. But what unfolded in the second half few could see coming before game time. Puma Pass has been groomed over the past few years as the man to take over for Heisman trophy winner Lamar Jackson.  After struggling against Alabama and in the first half with Puma Pass behind center on Saturday night, Bobby Petrino elected to play backup Malik Cunningham for the majority of the 3rd and 4th quarters.

There are a couple of high profile QB battles, most notable at Alabama and Clemson but after Saturday does the Louisville Cardinals belong on that list? Pass’s numbers were pedestrian. Just like against Alabama, Pass seemed to do a decent job of getting the offense to move for a few plays, but then they would stall out and punt. The only touchdown the Cards could muster in the first half was punt return for a score by Rodjay Burns.

Where Pass left off, Cunningham picked right up and sparked the Cardinals offense. He led the Cardinals to four straight scoring drives showing flashes of what he could be as a starter. Much of Cunningham’s game is similar to what we saw with Lamar Jackson at quarterback. He is an electrifying runner and is right on target with his arm.

“He added another dimension out there. He was very elusive and hard to tackle. I thought we had him bottled him up a couple of times. He’s a dynamic player and he did a tremendous job out there,” ISU coach Curt Mallory said.

“It wasn’t a very good night for us except for one thing, we got the win,” Petrino said.

This game was supposed to a tune for the Cardinals but it certainly left more questions than answers.

For the whole week, people will question who will be the starting QB. As the WKU Hilltoppers come into Cardinal Stadium Pass should still get the start. The weather and delays threw everything off and the bottom line is all the work in the offseason has been for him to be the starter. But if all else fails the game showed that UofL has a QB that can take over if need be.