No. 12 Louisville Holds Off Kentucky’s Late Charge

For all the preseason talk about Louisville’s high-powered passing game, it was a running back and a defensive end who led the Cardinals to victory in their opener.

Michael Bush rushed for 128 yards and two touchdowns, and Elvis Dumervil had a school-record six sacks as No. 12 Louisville held off Kentucky, 31-24, Sunday at Lexington, Ky.

The 6-foot-2, 250-pound Bush carried 27 times and scored on runs of one and 11 yards. He helped the Cardinals run out the clock after the Wildcats moved to within a touchdown in the fourth quarter. It was the Cardinals’ sixth win in seven years against their in-state rival.

Louisville’s heralded sophomore quarterback, Brian Brohm, completed 19 of 27 passes for 179 yards and rushed for two touchdowns in his first collegiate start. He had only one incompletion in the first half as the Cardinals took a 28-7 lead.

Kentucky pulled to within 31-24 with 11:52 left on a 15-yard touchdown pass from Andre Woodson to tight end Jacob Tamme.

A partially blocked Louisville punt gave the Wildcats possession at the Cardinal 33 with 7:21 left, and the Wildcats quickly reached the seven-yard line.

Quarterback Andre Woodson fumbled at the two while making a second effort to reach the end zone, and Louisville linebacker Brandon Johnson recovered with 6:21 left.

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West Virginia 15, Syracuse 7 -- Eric Wicks returned an interception 31 yards for a touchdown, and Pat McAfee kicked two field goals to lead the Mountaineers at Syracuse, spoiling the coaching debut of the Orange’s Greg Robinson.

McAfee’s first field goal, from 33 yards late in the third quarter, gave the Mountaineers a 10-7 lead. Midway through the fourth quarter, they added a safety when Ernest Hunter sacked Perry Patterson in the end zone.

The game was far from a thriller, with 11 punts in the first half as the short passing game clicked for both teams but produced little yardage. The half ended at 7-7, and the teams combined to complete 18 of 29 passes for only 82 yards.

In the lone sustained scoring drive, West Virginia went 55 yards in 10 plays, with quarterback Adam Bednarik’s 21-yard pass to Brandon Myles setting up McAfee’s decisive field goal with 5:53 left in the third quarter.

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California quarterback Nate Longshore underwent surgery to repair a broken bone in his left leg.

The surgery confirmed the original diagnosis of a fractured fibula, and no further damage was found, the school said. He is expected to be sidelined three months.

Longshore, a redshirt freshman who won the starting job over Joe Ayoob, broke his leg near his ankle late in the first half of the 19th-ranked Golden Bears’ 41-3 victory Saturday over Cal State Sacramento.