NOTE: Head on over to The Courier-Journal for Dan Norz's discussion with Tom Hesier.
Normally requiring a subscription, this article is free content. You can take out a BeaverFootball.com Pass for a FREE 7-day test drive and become a subscriber in one of three ways -- monthly, 6 months or Annual. Click on the 7-day free trial button at the top of the page for the various options, with the Annual Total Access Pass the most attractive in terms of price and perks.
| 1. |
Name
four players to watch - two on defense and two on offense - and why they
are ones Oregon State fans should keep their eyes on. |
| OFFENSE |
|
Running
backs Bilal Powell (pictured left) and Victor Anderson have provided Louisville's punch.
A leaner, stronger
Powell has rushed for 245 yards in Louisville's first two games; and Anderson,
a 1,000-yard rusher in his freshman year, looks to have bounced back from
an injury-plagued sophomore season to provide punch in the backfield and
on special teams.
|
| DEFENSE |
Defensive
end Rodney Gnat (pictured right) logged four sacks against
Eastern Kentucky; Louisville's eight sacks through two games equals their
entire 2009 output.
Senior cornerback
Johnny Patrick has been the Cards' most dependable performer
in the secondary.
|
|
|
2. |
What
are the strengths of the Louisville offense? What are its weaknesses? |
Louisville's 1-2 punch of
Powell and Anderson was more than both Kentucky and Eastern Kentucky could handle.
They seem to have both benefited from running out of the spread formation.
Weaknesses? How about the
receiving corps which has dropped at least nine passes in the first two games.
The Cards have been loathsome on third down -- converting just 6 of 25 opportunities.
Ham-handedness from the
receivers has been the major reason.
| 3. |
What
are the strengths of the Louisville defense? What are its weaknesses? |
The Cards planted Eastern
Kentucky quarterbacks on the turf eight times. In the second half against Kentucky,
Louisville did a good job keeping the Wildcat quarterback from running out of
the pocket.
The overall youth of the
linebacking corps and secondary has made the defense susceptible to big plays.
Kentucky averaged nearly 11 yards per play in the first half of the opening
game.
Defenders have been caught
out of position numberless times the first two games.
|
4. |
Coming
into this game where would you rank your team on a scale of 1-10 (with 10
being the team playing at peak performance) and why? |
I'd have to give the team
a 6 after a gritty, yet dispiriting loss to Kentucky and a somnolent, sloppy
outing against FCS foe Eastern Kentucky.
Charlie Strong
is rebuilding with a roster barren of speed and skilled playmakers. The Steve
Kragthorpe era was marked by defections from and dismissals of Bobby
Petrino's recruits, and the need to dip into the junior college ranks
to try and fill the shortfall in quality recruits.
The defense has been solid
through two games, but the offense hasn't adapted well to the spread concept.
I was in the crowd in 2005
when Louisville unlimbered the guns in a 63-27 blasting of the Beavers. One
memory I have is how impressed I was by the number of fans in Orange and Black
that made the trek east to witness the slaughter.
I don't know how many Cardinal
fans are planning to Lewis & Clark-it on Saturday, but it might be payback
time.
I watched the TCU game and
thought that the Beavers could have won that. There is just too much speed and
playmaking on the offensive side of the ball for the Cardinal defense to contain
and the Cardinal offense to match.
Beavers 49, Cards 21.
***
| |
A big
thanks to Tom Heiser for taking the time out of his busy
day to answer the questions. Please head over to The
Courier-Journal to browse his blog covering Louisville athletics. |