Louisville outlasted the Duke Blue Devils on Friday night which raised some eyebrows around the ‘Ville. Fans were not happy that Duke was able to control the clock, convert on fifty-percent of their third downs, and keep the Louisville offense out of rhythm to an extent.
I took a look at exactly what happened and I think the ‘Cards won a unanimous decision against an unorthodox puncher that studied their opponent ad nauseam. Here is my breakdown on why this game was way closer than everyone thought it would be, check it.
Phase #1 – How Duke schemed for Lamar Jackson and the read option.
Lotta folks thought Lamar was missing his keys in the read option, here Duke disguises the defense, causing LJ to keep when he shoulda gave. pic.twitter.com/xtDkooIMQ9
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Duke S Alonzo Saxton II comes up in run support and puts a hurtin on Lamar Jackson. Textbook safety play there a la Bob Sanders. pic.twitter.com/gIdtanL03q
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Duke comes out in a 4-2-5 wide formation and shuts down the UofL sprint option play. Great play call by the Blue Devils and great execution. pic.twitter.com/KFz9ip4f7B
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Duke again, does a great job not giving Lamar Jackson an obvious outside key on the read option and flowing to the outside to make a stop. pic.twitter.com/ScuBi02V6h
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Duke did a good job sitting in the gaps and not over pursuing the read option in the first half. Duke kids are smart and they executed well. pic.twitter.com/wR3eKhT8wl
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Brandon Radcliff takes a big shot in the hole from DT Brandon Boyce and poops out the big brown orb. pic.twitter.com/UoaLaLUErP
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Rare one-on-one sack of Lamar Jackson by Duke linebacker Joe Giles-Harris. pic.twitter.com/ckuWL2VJzb
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Phase #3: Hope for Louisville to screw up:
Also, miss me if you don't think this was a block in the back, it was. # pic.twitter.com/CzoKM59Hq6
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Jeremy Smith misses a block and Lamar is forced to throw off his back foot resulting in a missed touchdown. Not everything is on the QB. pic.twitter.com/obD89uWssP
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Lamar pulls a Randall Cunningham ball fake on the play action but side arms the throw flat footed rather than a backpedal over head throw. pic.twitter.com/z4oVA9XiaV
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
This boundary side pitchout to Radcliff woulda picked up more yards, maybe a TD, but the pulling tackle whiffs on the block downfield pic.twitter.com/t6HTitVkjD
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Phase #3: Play conservatively to prevent turnovers and make timely plays on third down:
Great execution here by Duke on third and 10, throwing a tunnel screen into the vapors of the blitzing UofL secondary. pic.twitter.com/94ijxDhFnO
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
The one time I remember Daniel Jones keeping the ball in the read option he picked up a 1st down. Don't remember him keeping again tho. pic.twitter.com/NEEjCfk1z6
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
People wanted to blame Josh Harvey Clemons for Duke's first TD but I don't think it was his fault necessarily. Let me explain. pic.twitter.com/ntcQNS7QUh
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Duke had been setting this play up all day with the quick screen game. Here KD Cannon bites, Lloyd runs the fade, TD Dookies. pic.twitter.com/ag17KdM94m
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Despite Duke’s solid game plan, they couldn’t pull out the win, and this one boneheaded play right here is what did them in:
Louisville lucked out at the end of the game, as Lamar forces one into coverage and then Deon Borders rolls up on O'Hara's plant foot. pic.twitter.com/DhPkXl7XZJ
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Also, Lamar Jackson was brilliant as always, and his steady play and resilience paced the ‘Cards and kept his team’s playoff hopes alive, as well as his Heisman candidacy.
Ever wonder what it means when you hear a QB shouting nonsensical words at the line of scrimmage? I gotchu. This is called "HOUSTON!" pic.twitter.com/abqkJfImJx
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
On UofL's 1st TD, Lamar recognizes man coverage, Staples runs a nice fade route & Smith exploits bad coverage technique for six. pic.twitter.com/Iar9WTzu8f
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Lamar Jackson evades the rush, keeps his eyes down field, & flips a sidewinder about 48 yards in the air as Seth Dawkins makes a nice grab. pic.twitter.com/NbO0R7FjyM
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Lamar Jackson does everything fast, including releasing the football. Watch him look down the gun barrel and throw a perfect laser. pic.twitter.com/ktU9FmU6As
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
If you have outside contain on #8 you have to target his outside shoulder with your inside shoulder and play outside-in. Inside-out is death pic.twitter.com/WVRHq1n6YU
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Quintessential Lambo Jackson right here. pic.twitter.com/6e5Qt2xAch
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Lamar Jackson's change of direction and acceleration is something to be marveled. pic.twitter.com/jdz8BSEar4
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Oh yeah, Jeremy Smith’s 80-yard TD run and cameo on the Lamar Jackson show also was one of the key plays that really swung the momentum back in favor of Louisville, and obviously was the biggest play of the game.
Jeremy Smith to the house, UL gets away with some holding but that's football and you can't complain about every missed call. pic.twitter.com/BrnvT12LgO
— Dave Lackford (@Rivals_DLack) October 16, 2016
Well that’s it folks, hope you learned something from all of this. While it wasn’t the high scoring affair that UofL fans have grown accustomed to this season, it was still a solid win. If you want to win a national championship in college football you gotta win the ugly ones, this was an ugly one, but UL escaped with the win and minimal injuries. You gotta count your blessings when you walk away from a car wreck.
Check back next week, I’ll have a post game piece on the NC State game Saturday afternoon, and I will also have another game breakdown posted by mid-week.
Ciao
Dave Lackford
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