Virginia and Louisville may not have a lot of history as football rivals, but the programs have the drama thing down pat. The two teams have played three times and all three games have featured a go-ahead field goal in the fourth quarter. On Saturday at Scott Stadium, Ian Frye’s 42-yard kick lifted the Hoos to a 23-21 victory in their 2014 ACC opener.
UVa simultaneously snapped a pair of losing streaks with the win. The Cavaliers had not won an ACC game since Nov. 10, 2012, a 41-40 triumph against Miami, and had not defeated a FBS opponent since Aug. 31, 2013, a 19-16 victory against BYU. The last time Virginia defeated a ranked team came on Nov. 19, 2011, a 14-13 victory at then No. 23 Florida State. Since that game, the Hoos had gone 4-21 against FBS competition, but they sent the No. 21 Cardinals packing on Saturday.
It’s no wonder that students rushed the field and emotions flowed with the coaches and players after the game.
“I’m very happy for this locker room. It’s been a long time coming. I believe this team is a team that has great resilience and never quits. If you can have those components in a football team, you can go far,” Virginia coach Mike London said. “I wanted it so bad, but I wanted it more for the players. To see a group of guys who have said ‘Coach, we are unified and committed to this program’ and see them execute and come out with a victory, I’m so happy for them.”
“I was about to cry. It is amazing when we work so hard and the way we came together today. We stayed unified and made huge plays today,” Cavalier quarterback Greyson Lambert said. “Football is an emotional game. I have never prayed so much in a football game before.”
Lambert, who started once again, played a huge role in the outcome. He completed 13 of 24 passes for 162 yards and one touchdown with one interception. He also added a 10-yard touchdown run in the third quarter that put the Hoos ahead 17-7 at the time. Lambert did get sacked three times as well, but held on to the football on those hits. Overall, there appeared to be a growing comfort for Lambert in the pocket.
None of that drew the most attention, though. Teammates raved about Lambert’s leadership as a captain in the media room after the game. They said he controlled the huddle with confidence. And after the Cardinals took the late lead, he went to the defense and gave them encouragement with a get me the ball back message. Those are the things that lifted Lambert to captain as a sophomore.
“I just said that exactly. I said ‘Get us the ball back. I believe in each and every one of you.’ I looked them all in the eyes because that’s what our chaplain George Morris has been saying. Communication and eye contact is huge. I really wanted them to know that I really believed in them,” Lambert said. “The whole offense believed in our defense and special teams and everything. That’s what I’m saying and I keep coming back to it, but this team is so unified that it makes the adversity easier becasue we know we have each other’s backs.”
The defense didn’t need to bring the ball back, however, because the special teams took care of that task first. With Louisville leading 21-20 on the strength of two fourth quarter touchdowns – a 56-yard drive and a 52-yard drive against a tiring UVa defense – the Hoos couldn’t string together an answer when the Cardinals surged ahead. Alec Vozenilek punted the ball 36 yards to a waiting James Quick, who waved for the fair catch. Just as Quick stepped forward to catch the ball, however, teammate Michaelee Harris bumped into him and the fumble ended up in the hands of Virginia’s Kelvin Rainey. That set up Frye for the game-winning 42-yard field goal, his third from 35 yards or more on the day.
Having the lead resecured was all the UVa defense needed to finish off the Cardinals, who struggled for much of the day against the pressure-packed schemes. The Hoos . Safetey Quin Blanding had eight tackles and one pass break-up, while Anthony Harris added eight tackles, one pass break-up, and one interception. Daquan Romero added eight stops and two pass break-ups, while Henry Coley had seven tackles including one sack and one pass break-up. The two linebackers also smothered the Louisville screen game as it tried to neutralize the pressure.
The Cavaliers intercepted two passes and recovered a fumble on D. Harris intercepted a pass tipped by Max Valles – he broke up four passes on the day – in the first quarter at the Louisville 22-yard line and Lambert hit Miles Gooch for a 15-yard touchdown three plays later. In the second quarter, Maurice Canady snared a pass at the Cardinal 38-yard line that led a Frye field goal. The Hoos scored 13 points off of turnovers in the game.
Defensive end Eli Harold capped the strong effort with an exclamation point on Louisville’s final drive. On second-and-10, Harold burst through a double team and leveled quarterback Will Gardner at the three-yard line. As he celebrated with his teammates, he threw up the ‘L’ sign with his arms as a hat tip to Wahoo legend Chris Long, who has become friends with Harold and was in attendance at the game. Harold had two sacks on the day.
“The whole game I was beating the guy inside so when Henry closed the call away from me, I gave him a hard step outside and he opened up his hips so I beat him inside,” Harold said. “[The guard] was there too, but I don’t know what happened. It just broke down. I wanted it bad, though. I really did. I really did want it because I missed the sack before the half so I had to make up for it.”
After Harold’s big play, the Cavaliers put the game away with handoffs to Kevin Parks as he gained the game-clinching first down after Louisville’s final timeout at the 1:06 mark. Parks finished with 66 yards on 22 carries, while fellow running backs Taquan Mizzell and Khalek Shepherd added 40 and 19 yards to the cause. The 114 rushing yards, good defense, and a game-changing special teams play were enough to get the Hoos back in the winner’s circle.
That was a good feeling for the redshirt senior.
“It is big, man. Especially coming off a season like last year. We will take a win whatever way we can. It was an ugly win, but we took it,” Parks said. “We have to keep pushing from here and keep that momentum going.”
