|
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP)- In the highest scoring Liberty Bowl ever, it was
a defensive play by Louisville that ended Boise State's 22-game winning
streak. Louisville safety Kerry Rhodes intercepted a pass in the end
zone as time expired to preserve Louisville's 44-40 victory over
10th-ranked Boise State on Friday.
"It's a great way to end it," Louisville coach Bobby Petrino said. "A
national audience, two teams that were supposed to score over 84 points.
I think we hit it right on the top."
Now Louisville (No. 8 ESPN/USA Today; No. 7 AP) will enter the Big East
Conference in grand style after handing Boise State its first loss since
September 2003 in a game that was the most important in school history
for both programs.
"This was big for us," Boise State receiver Chris Carr said. "We don't
see ourselves as a non-BCS school or a little school. We see ourselves
on the same level as any school we play. "We wanted to come out here and
prove to everybody that we're not a team in the WAC that's not very
good, and we just beat up on little teams."
Eric Shelton scored on the go-ahead touchdown on a 1-yard run with 6:48
left. Stefan LeFors threw two touchdowns and ran for a third as the
Cardinals (11-1), who have never finished ranked higher than 13th,
matched a school record for victories in a season (video). The Cardinals won
their third Liberty Bowl in their final appearance as a Conference USA
team.
The Broncos (11-1) had one last chance to win after Art Carmody's
19-yard field goal with 1:10 left put Louisville up four. Quarterback
Jared Zabransky drove the Broncos to the Louisville 30 before his final
pass into the end zone as time expired was intercepted by Rhodes. He
more than atoned for his missed interception opportunity in a 41-38 loss
on Oct. 14 to then-No. 3 Miami.
The win was a welcome end to a week in which the Cardinals were forced
to deal with the news that Petrino had interviewed with LSU about its
open coaching job. They certainly didn't seem distracted against the
Broncos.
Everyone expected a high-scoring game in a bowl pairing the nation's top
two offenses, and the teams didn't disappoint as they swapped the lead
five times. The 84 combined points topped the 80 points by Colorado and
Alabama in 1969 and was one of a handful of records set.
Louisville won only for the second time in seven bowls despite a
season-high four turnovers. The Cardinals rolled up 564 yards, topping
500 yards for the ninth time this season. LeFors was 18-of-26 for 193
yards and ran 12 times for 76 yards. The Cardinals rushed for 329 yards
against a defense that had been the nation's fourth-best against the
run.
This was the biggest game in school history for Boise State, a program
that moved up to Division I-A in 1996. The Broncos, who played their
first three bowls on their home field known for its blue turf, thought
they could keep up with an offense that had trailed only Louisville for
most yards and points. But the Broncos, who lost 12 starters from their
2003 squad, finished with 284 yards offense, well below their 511.6-yard
average.
The teams still rewrote the Liberty Bowl record book. They combined for
the most points in the first quarter with 24, and their 52 points were
the most for the first half. Boise State kicker Tyler Jones had a record
48-yard field goal on the Broncos' first drive, and Broncos linebacker
Andy Avalos had a 92-yard interception return off LeFors in the first
quarter that bested the 79-yarder by Michael Jordan of Tulane in 1998.
Boise State led as much as 34-21 early in the third quarter after
scoring 24 straight points. The Cardinals settled down when LeFors drove
them on an 81-play drive in eight plays, which he capped with a 14-yard
TD toss to J.R. Russell. LeFors then gave Louisville the lead back at
35-34 when he ran in from a yard out with 2:17 left in the third. Boise
State last led at 40-35 when Jon Helmandollar plunged in from 2 yards
with 10:51 left. |
|
Attendance: 58,355
Scoring Summary
First Quarter
BSU- FG Jones 48
UL- Barnidge 6 yd pass from LeFors (Carmody kick)
BSU- Avalos 92 yd interception return (Jones kick)
UL- Douglas 65 yd run (Carmody kick) (video)
Second Quarter
UL- Clark 30 yd pass from Brohm (Carmody kick)
BSU- Lau 0 yd fumble recovery (Jones kick)
BSU- Acree 19 yd pass from Zabransky (Jones kick)
BSU- Zabransky 1 yd run (Jones kick)
Third Quarter
BSU- FG Jones 42
UL- Russell 14 yd pass from LeFors (Carmody kick)
UL- LeFors 1 yd run (Carmody kick)
Fourth Quarter
BSU- Helmandollar 2 yd run (Zabransky pass failed)
UL- Shelton 1 yd run (LeFors pass failed)
UL- FG Carmody 19
Individual Statistics
Rushing
BSU- Marks 15-66, Carpenter 3-13
UL- Bushc12-96, Shelton 18-76, LeFors, Stefan 12-76, Douglas 1-65
Passing
BSU- Zabransky 14-29-199
UL- LeFors 18-26-193, Brohm 3-5-42
Receiving
BSU- J. Acree 4-57, Schouman 3-53, Bady 3-45
UL- Russell 6-59, Jones 5-33, McCauley 4-58, Clark 2-45, Smith 2-30
|
