Louisville’s run at a perfect season can came to an ugly and decisive end.
Syracuse’s Ryan Nassib threw for 246 yards and three touchdowns in his final home game, and moved into second on the school’s career passing list as the Orange handed the No. 11 Cardinals its first loss of the season in a 45-26 victory on Saturday.
“I am very embarrassed today for our program,” Louisville coach Charlie Strong said. “We didn’t play well – the preparation and the execution weren’t there.”
The Orange (5-5, 4-2 Big East) blew the game open with three touchdowns in the second quarter, and Louisville (9-1, 4-1) allowed more points than it had in any game this season. Syracuse is a win away from bowl eligibility with road games against Missouri and Temple left.
Jerome Smith ran for 144 yards for Syracuse, and Prince-Tyson Gulley added 98 yards rushing and two touchdowns.
Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater completed 36 of 49 passes for 426 and three touchdowns for Louisville, which fell into second place behind Rutgers in the Big East race.
ROYAL TREATMENT
The Texas Longhorns paid tribute to former football coach Darrell Royal during their game against Iowa State, honoring the man who won 11 conference titles and two national championships in his 20 years leading the program.
Royal, who died Wednesday at age 88, won 167 games at Texas from 1957 to 1976, a mark that still stands as a school record.
Texas ran its first offensive play from the wishbone formation Royal introduced to major college football in 1968. Instead of a run, Texas pitched the ball to Jaxon Shipley, who tossed it back to quarterback David Ash, who passed to tight end Greg Daniels for 47 yards, adding some razzle-dazzle to an old-school formation.
EXTRA POINTS
Georgia Tech held off North Carolina, 68-50, in the highest-scoring game in Atlantic Coast Conference history. The Yellow Jackets’ Jamal Golden returned a kickoff 100 yards for a score, and backup quarterback Vad Lee rushed for 112 yards and two touchdowns and threw for a third. The teams combined for 1,085 yards, 118 points – and just five punts – in surpassing the previous ACC record of 110 points set in Virginia’s 63-47 victory over Tulane in 1968.
JOIN THE DISCUSSION | Register here
We welcome comments. Please keep them civil, short and to the point. ALL CAPS, spam, obscene, profane, abusive and off topic comments will be deleted. Repeat offenders will be blocked. Thanks for taking part — and abiding by these simple rules. A thorough explanation of rules of conduct can be found in our Terms of Service. If you have any questions, including why your comment may not be showing immediately after you submit it, be sure to visit the commenting FAQ.