SportsDirect Inc. staff
Oct 3, 2014
Louisville 28, Syracuse 6: Brandon Radcliff ran for two touchdowns for the third straight game as Louisville downed host Syracuse in their first meeting as ACC rivals.
Radcliff followed up his personal-best 129-yard rushing effort in last week’s win over Wake Forest with 110 more on a career-high 23 carries for the Cardinals (5-1, 3-1 ACC), who held the Orange to 59 yards on the ground. Freshman Reggie Bonnafon connected with Gerald Christian on a 4-yard TD and finished 12-of-22 for 174 yards in his second career start for the injured Will Gardner.
Terrel Hunt went 17-of-32 for 196 yards with two interceptions before leaving with an apparent ankle injury midway through the fourth quarter for Syracuse (2-3, 0-3). Jarrod West led all receivers with five catches for 80 yards as Syracuse was held to 255 total yards.
Syracuse struck first on a 21-yard field goal by Cole Murphy midway through the opening quarter, but Radcliff carried five times on the ensuring 10-play drive and capped it with a 4-yard scoring run off left tackle. Louisville stretched its advantage to 12-3 by halftime, getting a safety when Gerod Holliman tripped up Adonis Ameen-Moore in the end zone before John Wallace drilled a career-best 51-yard field goal.
The Orange came up short in the red zone again to begin the second half and had to settle for a 24-yard kick by Murphy to close the gap to six, but the Cardinals answered with a powerful 14-yard TD run by Radcliff up the middle. Bonnafon found Christian in the right corner of the end zone midway through the final quarter and Louisville registered its second safety when Syracuse backup quarterback Austin Wilson fumbled on a sack deep in Orange territory.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Hunt was helped to the locker room following a sack by Louisville DE Deiontrez Mount. The senior signal-caller appeared to originally suffer the injury on a sack by Cardinals LB Keith Kelsey one drive earlier. … Holliman recorded his FBS-high seventh interception and has registered at least one in five of his team’s six games. … The Cardinals' defense has limited five of its six opponents to 88 rushing yards or fewer and recorded 12 interceptions - most in FBS.