SportsDirect Inc. staff
Oct 10, 2013
No. 8 Louisville 24, Rutgers 10: Teddy Bridgewater threw for two touchdowns, Senorise Perry ran for another and the host Cardinals forced four turnovers en route to their eighth straight victory.
Bridgewater finished 21-of-31 for 310 yards and an interception while Damian Copeland set career highs with eight receptions and 115 yards for Louisville (6-0, 2-0 AAC). Perry added a season-high 104 rushing yards, including a critical 42-yard run in the fourth quarter that put the Cardinals in position for a late insurance score.
Gary Nova completed 19-of-36 passes for 202 yards and a touchdown but threw a career-high four interceptions – matching his season total entering the contest – for the Scarlet Knights (4-2, 1-1). Rutgers, which was outgained 461-240, gave up eight sacks and rushed for a season-low 12 yards.
Two plays after Nova was intercepted by James Burgess to begin the second quarter, Bridgewater delivered a 34-yard scoring strike to Kai De La Cruz to stake Louisville to a 10-0 advantage. Perry capped the next drive with a 1-yard score, but Rutgers executed a fake field goal that led to Nova’s 1-yard TD pass to Tyler Kroft that closed the gap to 10 at halftime.
Kyle Federico hit a 36-yard field goal to bring the Scarlet Knights within 17-10 at the start of the final quarter and Anthony Cioffi forced a Bridgewater fumble inside the Rutgers 10 early in the fourth to stall a Cardinals drive. However, Bridgewater took advantage of Nova’s final interception, hitting Eli Rogers over the middle for a 6-yard touchdown to put away the game.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Bridgewater threw a touchdown pass for the 18th consecutive game, breaking the school record held by Dave Ragone. … Rutgers DB Lew Toler was carted off the field in the first quarter after suffering a left arm injury. … Louisville played without leading receiver DeVante Parker (right shoulder), who scored six receiving touchdowns over the team’s first five games.