Louisville Beats Boston College 31-27 in Slugfest

©Eric Canha-Imagn Images

Isaac Brown and the Louisville Cardinals (5-3, 3-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) defeated the Boston College Eagles (4-4, 1-3) in a highly contested Friday Night ACC Matchup 31-27. The Cardinals were able to make a stand on their final drive with the Eagles on the Cardinals 42 yard-line and keep them out of the end zone.

Game Summary

This one actually started out pretty sloppy as the Cardinals and Eagles both came up with nothing on their first two drives of the game. That was until we finally got a scoring drive.

A little over halfway into the first quarter, Eagles quarterback Thomas Castellanos ended up finding tight end Kamari Morales for a 54-yard touchdown pass and the Eagles led 7-0.

Two possessions later, Cardinals kicker Brock Travelstead missed a 56-yard field goal, and the Eagles were back in business. Ten plays later, Castellanos found running back Treshaun Ward for a 4-yard touchdown pass and it was 14-0 Eagles.

Two plays later, the Cardinals fumbled the ball and yet again the Eagles were back in business. Seven plays later, running back Kye Robichaux sprinted into the end zone for a 4-yard score and it was 20-0 Eagles.

The Cardinals actually answered back with a 10-play drive and went into the half down 20-7.

The Cardinals had the ball first to begin the second half and kicked a field goal on their first drive and were down 20-10. But the Eagles had another answer as they went five plays 74-yards and went up 27-10. But the Cardinals had the answer as they went nine plays 83-yards for a touchdown, and it was 27-17.

After two punts, one from each team, the Cardinals went four plays 42-yards for the touchdown as Brown sprinted into the end zone for the 18-yard score. It was 27-24 and was getting dicey.

The Eagles went three-and-out on the next drive and the Cardinals made them pay as they scored yet again on four plays as quarterback Tyler Shough found tight end Nate Kurisky for the 6-yard score and the Cardinals had the lead 31-27.

That was the final score as the Cardinals made a defensive stand on the Eagles last possession of the game.

Turning Point: Louisville

The true turning point was when the Eagles went 3-and-out late and the Cardinals responded and took the lead as Shough found his tight end.

What It Means for Each Team

As for the Eagles, they found a way to blow this one and should have been able to hold on. For them, its back to the drawing board as they try to figure out answers on defense. Next up, they have a bye week in Week 10.

For the Cardinals, this was a great come-from-behind win and they should feel great about where they are. Next up for them, they will go on the road to face a tough No. 9 Clemson Tigers (6-1, 5-0) team on the road. The Cardinals will need to be prepared and try to come out of there with a huge win.