(Almost) Rock Bottom

Well, if you're going to play in a game that will certainly go down in history as an insult to the sport, you may as well win it. I hope it's retold as oral history because no one should be forced to watch that exhibition again. I could go search my thesaurus to attempt to put the grizzly absence of offense into some sort of verbal coherence, but hell, who am I kidding, I'm thrilled to death with this victory. The Great Big East Drought can no longer be mentioned as a crushing and embarrassing weight on the program, and Papa John's will not suffer the ignominy of becoming the cursed ground where Greg Paulus won a football game. Day of rest tomorrow, but join us on Monday as we take one last look at this game and then never speak of it again, (except around camp fires, to scare Pop Warner kids), and bring you all the giddy excitement of Tipoff Eve. Go Cards.  

Go Cards!!!

If you're reading this you can get our predictions here and here. Now turn off your computer and help cheer the Cards to a victory that will keep us from becoming the rightful cellar-dwellar of the Big East!

Some goosebumps to go with your coffee...

Another "nooner" today, Cards fans. Question: if Rudy was out there today at Papa John's, who would he be rooting for, us or the Orange? Got to be us, right? We're crazy enough to start our 5 foot 8 walk-on at quarterback. (even Rudy never started!) Their QB is a former Duke basketball player, one of the most widely hated species in sports and about the furthest thing from an underdog you can find. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh C! A! R! D! S! CARDS!!!

...and predictions

Krags should start Adam Froman at quarterback (assuming he's healthy), but not be afraid to play either Justin Burke or even Shortround. Darius Ashley will dominate early, but Syracuse will adjust enough to limit him, especially after they learn not to fear facing facing the Cards on a short-yardage third down. Louisville's defense will manage the day against Syracuse's depleted offense, but the Cards' offense won't show any signs of life except for a brief spell in the second quarter. If that long, concerted drive doesn't end in another red zone malfunction or a disastrous turnover, and the Cards can hold on to a small lead in the second half, then call this one for the Cards, 10 - 3. Go Cards!

Quotes from Syracuse

Taken from the Daily Orange:

-- "I believe they have it out for us because for the past two years they've been one of the teams that we've had success against," defensive tackle Anthony Perkins said. "So if I were a betting man I'd say that they would be prepared for us. It's away and at their place, so I know they're juiced up to come out and show they can win, too."

-- "Of course, it's a one-game season right now," running back Averin Collier said. "We're taking it one game at a time and are going after each game and attacking it with a winning gameplan and go in to win."

-- "We just go out there and we gotta play real hard and know we got to come out with a victory," Davis said. "Since we know that we gotta win these three straight games, everybody is real focused, not like we haven't been focused, but we're real focused right now and hungry to get a win."

Focus and determination disgusts me. Kick their ass Cards!

More winner, less weiner

During Eric Crawford's live-chat last night a sentiment was expressed that I've heard repeated in several circles. It's quickly becoming common knowledge that the next Cardinal coach will be an offensive mind, akin to Bobby Petrino, to once again light-up the scoreboard at Papa Johns. This thinking is a big strike against Charlie Strong, defensive coordinator at Florida, who I think could bring our program to new heights. I wanted to make my plea before this common knowledge hardens into concrete.

Look, I like offense as much as the next guy. But you don't turn down Scarlett Johansson just because you happen to be a legs man. I want points, but I also want a stout defense, and exciting special teams for that matter (the good kind of exciting, not the kind we have now). A complete team, efficiency in all phases of the game, is the goal. Strong is a defensive mind to be sure, but it doesn't necessarily follow that offense would suffer under his leadership. For one thing, he hasn't been given a head coaching opportunity yet; it remains to be seen what type of coordinator he will hire, or how Strong's personality would be reflected in his offense.

It's the personality that interests me greatly. It's not always about style-of-play. Sometimes it's about style, period. I know Steve Kragthorpe was already on Tom Jurich's radar, but for the life of me I cannot imagine him wowing anyone in a job interview or expounding a vision for Louisville football. He always communicates in predictable ways, either dull/monotone coachspeak or jittery/fiery coachspeak; neither is one you want your head coach to project. Did you hear his halftime interview during the West Virginia game? He sounded like he had just downed 4 pots of coffee, I don't think he took a breath.

Charlie Strong is the opposite of that. He's an authoritarian, but one with the rare ability to garner both fear and adoration from his players. He's a successful, charismatic African-American male, and it seems likely that such a figure would generate interest from recruits, the majority of which are young African-Americans. He is exactly what UofL is looking for. He's an up-and-comer in that he's never been a head coach, yet he's also a proven winner in that he has two national championships sparkling like diamonds on his resume. I would hate to see the Cards pass on this potentially transformative figure just because he doesn't run the spread offense.

Predictions, predictions...

I agree with ESPN's Brian Bennett that Syracuse has played better football than the Cards, but injuries have decimated the Orange badly enough to give the Cards the edge. The biggest news from the week was that Syracuse's Art Jones, senior nose tackle, was having season-ending knee surgery. That's a huge loss for their defense, but welcome news for UofL's offensive line, that seems to be gelling a bit, and for emerging star Darius Ashley. If we play a quarterback that's tall enough to ride a rollercoaster, I don't think the Cards will have difficulty moving the ball.

Syracuse is in turmoil; their locker room is still reeling from the departure of Mike Williams. Losing that target will have a negative impact on QB Greg Paulus, who seems to be getting shakier with every week. I think the Cards grab their only comfortable win of the season. 27-14 Cards. Book it.

Don't think the unthinkable

I must confess I spent a few minutes yesterday talking myself into a 6-6 finish for the Cards. Syracuse barely has enough healthy players to field a team. And South Florida? They're notoriously schizophrenic at this point in the season; they are playing a backup quarterback. Rutgers? Similarly uninspiring, and anything can happen with those 11am kickoffs, don't you know. So it was with a little bit of a curious swagger that I tuned into ESPN for the South Florida-Rutgers game last night.

Well...it ain't gonna happen. They're good. Both of them (even though USF got smashed). Much better than we are. For the first half anyways, it was a wild game full of turnovers, special teams adventures, and big plays; both Rutgers and South Florida played with an intensity that the Cards have seldom shown this season. Oddly, the coaches seemed to design a game plan to maximize their players' talent. And the players, strangely enough, responded favorably to being put in such situations. Football can be such a fun, beautiful sport when played the right way. I will relish the day the Cards have a coach to get us back in the party.

Flash Forward

Unlike most bloggers, I'm terrible with technology. It was Mr. Black's heavy-lifting that created this site. Joining Twitter was a similar stretch for yours truly, but it's been worth it, if only to follow the Cardinal basketball team. One thing I learned quickly: they are obsessed with the NBA. In their free moments (which aren't many) no matter who's playing, they're watching. Of course they were glued to the tube last night to see LeBron face off against Dwaye Wade. And through the magic of Twitter, you get their instant reaction to this play...



Rakeem Buckles:

Just saw the worst dunk ever from Dwade OMG !!!!!!!!!

Edgar Sosa:

D-Wade just finished varejao... OMG!... DAMN!

Peyton Siva:

Omg d.Wade don't do it like dat

Chris Brickley:

Dwade just smashed it on verejo!!!

And he triple-doubled the Wildcats in the 2003 tourney, don't neglect your history kids.

The unexamined life is not worth living

CJ blogger Tom Heiser writes a solid post (and a good vocab brushup) that starts off as a poke at Syracuse football, and meanders into a lengthy questioning of Louisville's place in the universe of college sports. There's a lot of reflection going on in The Ville as we wander in the football wilderness. An excerpt:

Inane billboards touting Louisville as a premier college town always came across as a hortatory marketing ploy unmoored from reality. Louisville is much more emblematic of a pro sports town (despite its inability to attract one). When it comes to basketball, 19,000+ follow the team with enviable ardor, push the limits on the decibel meter during the peaks and groan in the troughs -- all without a callow, self-regarding student section bobbing up and down and howling when a particular opponent dribbles the ball. Football passions were ignited over the past ten years by the quality product that both John L. Smith and Bobby Petrino led out of the Unitas Complex. But just like the Oakland Raiders, Kansas City Chiefs, Jacksonville Jaguars, the fans voice their disapproval with events on the field with their absence.

Oh yea, one more thing...

The player with perhaps the biggest impact on Saturday's matchup is one that won't even be in pads. Mike Williams, the Orange's NFL-level receiver, abruptly quit the team last week. Williams just didn't seem to be destined for the ivory towers of scholastic achievement. Here was his Facebook status from a few weeks ago, for which he was suspended one game.

"I HATE COLLEGE I CANT SEE ME DOING THIS FOR LONG.HINT HINT.-0 LMAO"

The funniest thing about this situation is the nonchalant manner in which Coach Dave Marrone broke the news that his flamboyant/troubled/best-player was no longer with the team. Listen below, Marrone drops the news so casually around the 5:00 minute mark that the reporters start laughing.

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Your move Patrick Hughes

Check out the Penn State marching band's halftime performance from this October. The coolest marching band moment since...well, ever.



(Hat Tip: toplessrobot)

The Cardinal family

Keep former Cardinal Alhaji Mohammad in your thoughts. Now playing ball in France, Mohammad was granted a 10 day leave from his squad to deal with a personal tragedy. Details are few, but reports are that someone very close to him was brutally slain. Send out some good vibes to Alhaji as he goes through a difficult time.

Must-win

On September 3, I wrote the following about the Louisville-Syracuse game this weekend:

Louisville cannot lose three years in a row to a moribund football program, but the Cards, along with Connecticut, have provided Syracuse its only Big East wins during the past two years. So in a weird way, this contest actually will have the makings of a big game, if for no other reason than respect... well, more like saving the last shreds of respect still salvageable, unless one or both teams have unexpectedly solid years (and I'm hoping!). So yes, an unlikely battle for bragging rights, but in any case, a game the Cards can ill afford to lose.

And September 13, I wrote this:

I don't care what our record (or theirs) is by the time we face off on Nov. 14. That's going to be a big game, a showdown to save pride or sink it. Bring it, Orange. By November, we'll either have played better than expected, or will have had the type of season that there will be nothing left to lose.

The second turn of events has obviously come to pass. Nevertheless, I want to win this game! The thought of losing to Syracuse three years in a row is not bearable. Do it for pride guys.

Preview from an Orange blog about the Cards "seeking revenge" available here.

Arkansas Suspensions

The Cards first opponent, Arkansas, will only have 9 players in uniform on Tuesday night. Head coach John Pelphrey has suspended 5 players for their involvement in an incident at a fraternity party, where an 18 year old female said she was raped. No charges have been filed, but the case is being investigated by a special prosecutor.

Yikes. Kind of puts the Kye's altercation into perspective doesn't it? Kudos to Pelphrey for putting basketball in the backseat and jeopardizing the season while the situation is sorted out. True freshman Julysses Nobles (featured) will take over at point guard for the Razorbacks when they face the Cards on Tuesday.

The Piledriver

Drink forward, Fall backward...

Undeterred by our admonition against noon Saturday starts, the schedulers have upped the ante and announced the Cards' regular season finale at 11:00AM, the Friday after Thanksgiving. Touche, anonymous schedulers, touche. Heretofore, I did not know such an AM start was possible. Clever, but futile. There is no hour too early, no law is existence, no cultural meme too sacred, to keep me from protesting this abomination of a start time to the full extent of my liver's capability. That's not a threat. That's a promise.

Billy Reed takes on UK and coal-mining

I missed this when the news first came out, but apparently the UK Board of Trustees has approved naming one of its basketball facilities the "Kentucky Coal Lodge." And Billy Reed has taken umbrage. Reed writes on his blog:

Buckle up your chin straps tight, folks, because the national media is going to have a ball with this. It’s hardly a secret that when it comes to basketball, our state’s values are grossly out of whack. Just about everybody either snickers at us – or pities us – because basketball is so obviously more important than education. Now, courtesy of the UK Board of Trustees, the critics and the comics now have this wonderful mother lode of new material with which to poke fun at the commonwealth and our warped values.

The rest of his post can be read here, but I would be skipping over it if I didn't also highlight this little nugget:

So you can’t blame the same industry which is trying to develop “clean coal” technology with trying to develop a “cleaner image” strategy. But, heavens, you can certainly blame the whores and other assorted knuckleheads of the UK Board of Trustees.

Less Moore

J.J. Moore has committed to Pitt. Apparently the Cardinals cooled on Moore's recruitment late in the game, but that may be posturing. I'm a little dispirited because small forward is such a crucial position in Pitino's offense, and Moore is likely a four-year player. See you around the Big East, Mr. Moore.

Lessons from WKU?

Eric Crawford pens an interesting article chiding the Western Kentucky administrators for firing coach Dave Elson yesterday. I don't know enough about WKU football to say whether Elson was treated fairly, but I will say that the administration's rationale that the team was getting worse with each season seems a reasonable one, and one with which I sympathize. After winning 7 games in 2007, the Hilltoppers have gone 2-19 since, and conference games have seldom been competitive. Crawford argues that Elson was redshirting players and foregoing JUCO transfers in order to build-up the program. That may be true, but hardly seems to account for that level of decline. 

I sympathize with those that see the writing on the wall, but are chastised for their impatience while a program falls apart, little by little, season by season. Now WKU is not a tradition like Michigan or Notre Dame, and neither is UofL for that matter, but the point remains the same. There is no magical, optimum moment when removing a coach becomes a manifest necessity. When it's apparent to the vast majority of freethinking people that it's not working out, you grit your teeth, rip-off the bandaid, and start the process of getting better. Maybe it's easier for sportswriters to paint a narrative of a coach being betrayed by backstabbing administrators, but these situations always seem to elicit vague maxims (e.g. "You just don't do that"), rather than a commonsense examination of the situation. In the UofL context, for example, many became disillusioned very early, and could plainly see that Kragthorpe was a poor fit. Time and again those fans were told to wait for Kragthorpe to get his players, despite the fact that that reasoning made little sense in our situation. You can't get rid of him now, said the wise ones. Why? You just can't, that's why. Bad precedent, etc. etc...

Well, we waited, and whaddaya know, it didn't get better. It's still not time, according to Crawford. In his opinion, there's little to gain in removing Krags now:

Attendance may suffer, but the seats have been sold already, and fans of the Cardinals aren't known for packing houses in November anyway. There were better than 3,500 empty seats for the final home game of the Cardinals' 2006 Orange Bowl season.

Little to gain? Maybe, maybe not. There is a medium between the 3,500 empty seats from three years ago and the 20,000 seats empty last week. In my opinion, however, it would be worth it, if only as a small vindication for those that saw that there was little to gain in bringing Kragthorpe back a year and a half ago.

Syracuse Orange's "This is Sportscenter" moment

Stupid-looking mascot with a dumb blue hat...

Marked Men

Shamarko Thomas and Brandon Sharpe, who committed then decommitted to Louisville before signing with the Orange, apparently understand the consequences of their sins (we wrote about Sharpe and his decision not to come to Louisville in part because of its low graduation rate earlier this year). From the Syracuse Post-Standard:

Shamarko Thomas and Brandon Sharpe are marked men ... and know it, too. As seniors at Ocean Lakes High School in Virginia Beach, Va., Thomas and Sharpe made verbal commitments to sign football grants-in-aid with Louisville. Then they changed their minds and signed with Syracuse.

On Saturday, Syracuse plays at Louisville in a Big East Conference football game. It’s a good bet that the Cardinals are on alert to remember the actions of Thomas and Sharpe.

“I’ve got to perform well,” said Thomas to laughter with reporters on Tuesday. “I’ve got to show them the reason I came here is to change this program and we’re not losing to Louisville.”

“They probably do,” Sharpe said, when asked if the Cardinals will know who he is. “It’s going to be a good game, though. The competition level is going to be high, of course, for me and Shamarko because we were both committed there, and then we decommitted. It’s going to be lots of fun.

“I’m kind of anxious for this game. I hope I get a lot of plays. Hopefully, it’s a good game."

National Signing Day!

But don't get too excited. It's a pretty uneventful day for the Cards. Don't panic. There's scholarship math involved, and 2011 is shaping up to be a much more active year for UofL. If you have the time, I highly recommend Jody Demling's recruiting chat from last night. Here's a recap of what he had to say on the Cards 3 potential recruits...

* J.J. Moore: The 6'6'' small forward out of Connecticut has trimmed his list to 2, and those are likely Pitt and St. John's. Cardinal interest in Moore waned somewhat following his visit.

* Russell Smith: The mystery guard from the same high school as Moore is yet to be offerred a scholarship from the Cardinals, despite some reports (and Smith himself). He's a high-risk, high-reward sort of talent. He visits Louisville the 17th, and will likely sign then if an offer is made.

* Tobias Harris: The big one, the 6'8'' forward from Long Island, was long rumored to be a Syracuse lean. But Demling's a tease, and he suggested last night that Tennessee and Louisville are both in solid positions based on the rapport Harris developed with the teams. Don't count the Cats out yet either. Basically, no one knows, and won't until Harris announces on the 19th, or until word inevitably leaks out on the 18th.

Greg Paulus Flops

Dick on Rick

Dick Vitale gave an interview with Hoopsworld yesterday. Here's what he had to say about Coach Pitino's situation...

Q: This summer, two coaches dominated the headlines - Pitino and Calipari. How damaged are their legacies after Pitino’s sex scandal and Calipari had another Final Four scrubbed from the books?

Vitale: It certainly doesn’t help their image, or their resume, and it brings the doubters out in full force. However - remember this - Rick Pitino has said it once, twice, 20 times, 50 times: He made a mistake. He made an absolute mistake. No doubt whatsoever. What he did, as a married guy, he knows was wrong. However - saying all that … he was a victim of an extortion attempt. The trial is coming up. This woman has been charged with extortion, which is a criminal offense.
Rick, when I talked to him [Friday] … is so dedicated to two factors: Family and Louisville basketball. That’s all he wants to concentrate on and that’s all he wants to do. As long he has admitted to his wife and kids what a mistake he made … you know, people make mistakes.

Hodgepodge

Earl Clark's five-month old daughter Ke'nya said her first word, "Da-da", last week. Says Clark, "Every time she says it I get a big smile." Darius Ashley believes that trying to win games for the seniors is what's holding the Cards together through a difficult season. Former Card Anthony Allen is still putting up big stats for red hot #7 Georgia Tech. Though only getting 3 carries, Allen rushed for 43 yards and broke off a 20-yard gainer during the Yellowjackets' win over Wake Forest. It's becoming increasingly difficult to get tanked with all these nooners, the 12:00 kickoff for South Florida has been announced, it'll be the Cards' third noon start in a row. And finally, if you're like me and sometimes feel a tinge of sympathy for sad Steve Kragthorpe, just remember that he's a very rich man.

Impact Player Alert

Personnel woes continue to mount for Syracuse. This Saturday they will be without senior nose tackle Arthur Jones; he tore his meniscus against Pitt last Saturday. Described by ESPN's Brian Bennett as perhaps the best interior lineman in the Big East, Jones could have gone pro after last season (some scouts projected him as a first or second round pick) but decided to return for his senior season. The Cuse will also be without senior right tackle Jonathan Meldrum who suffered the same injury during the game. Already fielding a depleted roster, Syracuse only took 55 scholarship players on the road last week.

Big East Preview

Tipoff is exactly one week away. We're in the calm before the storm phase; not much new with the Cards except for lots and lots of practice. While we impatiently wait, here's a pretty decent breakdown of what to look for in the Big East this season. Not a whole lot on the Cards, just like we like it, so I threw in a sometimes overlooked highlight for good measure.  

Judge Ido

Buried in the NY Times article on Jeremy Tyler (abbreviated reprint in the CJ today, our take here) was a curiosity-provoking quote from Tyler's teammate, Israeli big man Ido Kozikaro. On Tyler's poor defense, Ido said:

"If I let up a basket that easy, I would want to stab myself."

This of course sent me scambling to websites like bulgarianbasket.com to find out all I could on the aggressive, balding, 31-year old Israeli. Here's how my new favorite foreign center has been described by his Haifa team:

"The most veteran crown moves to Ido "Concrete Wall" Kozikaro. The massive inside player hasn't missed a single EuroBasket in the new millennium and is considered one of the most important locker-room players on the team, in addition to his toughness and great strength he adds on court. In the Israeli league he continues to be a force in the paints and now he carries on his wide shoulders a lot of experience that might turn out very beneficial for the team. Kozikaro will push, shove, fight and hustle for every point and rebound. If you want to show some fans what hard work and passion can do, focus your eyes on the Israeli big."

Leave Greg alone!

In case you missed it, after the Orange lost to Cinci, first-year coach Doug Marrone gave an impassioned explanation of his man-crush on Greg Paulus. Marrone seems like a good guy, and normally it's admirable when coaches stick up for players like this. But unfortunately for Marrone, the fact remains that Paulus played point guard at Duke, and therefore this video is exceedingly lame. Enjoy! 

Kragthorpe Kwote of the Day

“We've got a great bunch of senior players who have done a lot for this program and done a lot for this community on and off the field...And I think they are deserving of the support of our fans with these last two home games.” --Coach Steve

I fully agree with Coach on this one. There's a term for fans that only show up when the team is having a winning season.

Syracuse Turmoil

Loyal readers know that Cardinal Laws has been looking forward to the Louisville-Syracuse matchup with morbid fascination for quite some time. Not only will it be a battle to determine which team stays out of the Big East cellar, but Syracuse is the other Big East program that rivals the Cards in off-field drama.

It began early last Sunday morning, 5:30AM, when star wideout Mike Williams and three prominent teammates were involved in a car crash on the New York State Thruway. The next day came an abrupt announcement that Williams had left the team, with few details and little explanation. The talented Williams has had a rocky tenure at Syracuse; he missed all of last season after being involved in a cheating scandal, and had also missed the previous game against Akron for an unspecified violation of team rules.

Fallout from the car crash continued later that day. As word was being circulated about Williams' departure, it was announced that three other players, including tailback Antwon Bailey and starting offensive guard Andrew Tiller, were suspended from the team. It was later discovered that they were the three also involved in the crash. Syracuse lost big to Pitt on Saturday, and since then the team has been the subject of nonstop speculation on Mike Williams' status, reports of secret team meetings and player votes on whether or not to reinstate their teammates. The other three players were reinstated by rookie Coach Doug Marrone yesterday, but there has been no change on the status of Mike Williams; he is not presently on the team. We will bring you further updates as the Orange turns.

Mark your calendar

January 30th. That's when the Cardinals will have a chance at retribution from the Mountaineers; that's the date the b-ball team storms Morgantown. Yesterday, after the football Cards left town defeated, Huggy Bear introduced his highest-ranked basketball team at Mountaineer Madness. Here's their video intro, their starting lineup, and a glance at the event itself.

How good was the defense?

Pretty damn good. Their performance will quickly be forgotten amid the greater turmoil surrounding the program, but the defense on display during the Cardinals losing effort is worthy of a another moment's pause. The Cards held Heisman hopeful Noel Devine to 56 yards, and were equally efficient stopping the dangerous Jarrett Brown, allowing only 100 yards passing. In all the Mountaineers were held 100 yards below their average total offense, went 3 for 11 on 3rd down, and coughed up 2 turnovers. Despite some poor tackling, the Cardinals swarmed to the football, wrecked havoc on the WVU backfield, and ultimately looked like the tougher and more aggressive team. Before the season I wrote that even if the Cards weren't destined for January glory this season, I hoped for a tough squad that you could be proud of even in defeat. We certainly got that on Saturday from the defensive side of the ball.

You want to feel even more queasy about the loss? The Cards outgained the Mountaineers 301-273, had more time of possession, allowed only ten complete passes, and won the turnover battle. The Cards weren't just competitive, they should have won. Why did it still seem so far way?

Remember Jeremy Tyler?

The 6'11'' prospect that skipped his senior year of high school and spurned the Cards to play professional ball in Israel? Yea, things aren't going so well for him. The New York Times has a sadly fascinating piece on the talented but naive prospect. His teammates are, by and large, Israeli-men just finishing their mandatory 3 year stint in the army, and let's just say there's a bit of a culture clash between them and the egocentric Tyler. Described by his coaches as lazy and combative, athletic but hopelessly unskilled (his Haifa coach was shocked to discover Tyler lacked basics like the ability to box out or rotate on defense), Tyler seems to be the last one to recognize that his dream of "shaking David Stern's hand" and retiring with a 200 million dollar bank account is slipping away. It's also an indictment of the "mogul culture" coveted by many young athletes, where being a good basketball player is no longer enough. Tyler is exploring a future in modeling, is the subject of a documentary on his life, and speaks how he and girlfriend Erin Wright (daughter of the late rapper Easy E) will be America's next power couple, akin to Jay-Z and Beyonce. For now though, he's sitting alone (plans for his brother to move to Israel never materialized) in his sparse Haifa apartment (he expected more lavish furnishings) playing his music (too loudly, the neighbors have had to call the police three times in complaint) and not getting better at basketball (told his coaches they don't know anything about the game). A fascinating look at a player that was almost a Cardinal. From this account it certainly sounds like he should have been.

In defense of Stein

Will Stein has taken some heat in the Cardinal blogosphere since Saturday's uninspiring performance from the Cards' offense. He did not play well... couldn't spot open receivers, held on to the ball too long, took two sacks in a row during that final minute that were inexcusable. As I argued in my post last week, Kragthorpe was right to start him, but if Stein couldn't move the ball then he should have sent in Froman or Burke (assuming that either are healthy enough to play, and of this I have no idea anymore). Stein is certainly not a long-term answer to the woes ailing this program... No matter what happens the rest of this season, Adam Froman should be the front-runner for starter next season.

Still, I would caution those who blame Stein for the loss or think that Froman would have done better given the same pathetic play-calling. In fact, the ineptitude of the Cards' offensive performance most closely resembled the second half of the game against Pitt, when it was Froman who couldn't get a first down if his life depended on it. At least in that game, Krags called plays moving Froman out of the pocket. I never could have imagined that offensive play-calling would get worse after Pitt, but against West Virginia, it was that bad. Playing our 5 foot 8 quarterback, why did we call so many straight-dropback plays? Stein looked bewildered in the pocket, but as he proved on the touchdown pass that was nullified, he is capable of threading the needle on the run. That his touchdown throw was taken away because of a holding penalty is a damn shame, since it was a terrific play, would have tied the game, allowed fans to savor some aspects of Stein's performance, maybe even enabled us to win. I guess that's just football, particularly in the Kragthorpe era.

Honestly, if I were Krags, I wouldn't hesitate to play Stein again. He may not have the most ability, but seeing if the undersized local kid can compete against the competition is one of the last interesting things left in a lost season. I admit, very parochial, but here we are.

Nevertheless, play the other QBs too. Play 'em all! What possible reason is there left to stick with one quarterback as some point of coaching dogma? If you're going to be annoyingly coy about who is going to start before every single football game, then you might as well get some value out of it and try different quarterbacks during the game. In a season that doesn't mean much anymore in terms of wins and losses, what's the harm in trying new things?

Mountaineer Reax

* WVU back Jock Sanders: "We have to get up for every game. Maybe we played down a little bit and were sluggish because it was Louisville."

* Coach Bill Stewart, on the post-game groans from WVU fans: "It is a shame a Big East win is no longer good enough..."I guess you are supposed to win by overwhelming odds all the time."

* WVU fan: "I’ve pretty much taken up for Stew and had adopted a wait and see attitude. That being said, I’ve waited and seen enough. This crap is PATHETIC. Unless Stew suddenly wakes up and gets this shit straight, Cincinnati and Pitt will roll this team. I heard Stew’s after game comments and apparently, he’s satisfied with a 17-9 win over an absolutely horrible UL squad. That makes one of us.

* And finally, a WVU columnist throws a hissy fit over Steve Kragthorpe's wife sitting in the press box during the game. I'm not sure if it qualifies as one of the reasons for the decline of print journalism, but pretentious attitudes like this one sure aren't helping:

The men and women -- like myself -- who have a job to cover these teams should be granted one piece of real estate that serves as a sanctuary from everything else: The press box. We earned as much, we deserve it. If you expect objective, non-biased reporting, we expect an atmosphere free of the wife of a coach sitting right behind us.

You've made a powerful enemy today, my friend

I guess I'm going to have to go elsewhere from now on to get my shirtless Luke Walton fix. Rick Bozich expresses dismay on his blog that the Cards have been omitted from ESPN the magazine's preview of the top 64 college basketball teams. Heads must roll for this.