Week 13: West Virginia at Louisville

Perhaps it’s appropriate.

West Virginia remains in the Big East horse race. But it must help itself in the Derby City.

The Mountaineers technically are in a three-way tie for first place with Cincinnati and Pittsburgh at 3-1. But the men of coach Bill Stewart are coming off a loss to the Bearcats and are not in control of their own destiny. They need to defeat Louisville, Pittsburgh and South Florida to close the season and hope UC loses either to Pitt or Syracuse.

Perhaps it’s good for WVU this game is at noon while the Pitt-Cincy game is later in the day. A Cincinnati victory before this one might take the wind out of WVU’s proverbial sails.

There are many factors to consider in this one. First is Louisville has nothing to lose and would like nothing better than to spoil its rival’s title chances. Second, the Cardinals are at home.

One wonders, though, how many fans will file into Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium with the hosts 1-4 in league play — especially if it’s an ugly November day.

On the other hand, Louisville played last week, losing to Cincinnati and for the third straight game. WVU had the week off.

"I think at this point in the season it’s great to have a bye week simply because this is the time when the injury bug starts to catch up with you," said U of L coach Steve Kragthorpe.

Injuries, though, don’t seem to be a big problem for this game. WVU is expected to get backup quarterback Jarrett Brown and special teams regular Jim Lewis back. The one question mark is center Mike Dent, who missed the Cincy game with a neck injury.

Louisville, meanwhile, will have the services of its two most significant offensive players — quarterback Hunter Cantwell and tailback Victor Anderson — despite nicks suffered against the Bearcats.

"Everybody’s hurting. That’s football," said WVU’s Stewart. "If you’re not hurting, you’re not playing."

On paper, West Virginia seems to have the edge, especially if quarterback Pat White can exploit a maligned Louisville secondary. If not, though, watch for the upset.

Notes:

Both teams have young explosive tailbacks in Noel Devine (WVU) and Victor Anderson (Louisville). And keep this in mind as you watch the game: They could have been on the same team. Anderson committed to play for West Virginia before coach Steve Kragthorpe took over the Cardinals.

At 5-5, Louisville needs at least one victory, and maybe two, to land a bowl berth. The Cardinals host WVU then travel to Rutgers for the season finale on Dec. 4.

West Virginia’s last two losses have been overtime setbacks by three points each. The team lost to Cincinnati by 26-23 and, back on Sept. 18, at Colorado by 17-14.
 
Key Player (Mountaineers) — Pat White, QB

Everyone knows White can use his feet. He’s averaging 73.3 rushing yards a game. The question in this one is if he can take advantage of a Louisville secondary ranked dead last in the Big East.

Key Player (Cardinals) — Doug Beaumont, WR

Beaumont, ranked fifth in the Big East in receptions (4.6 average) will have to help a sometimes-struggling Hunter Cantwell with the passing game. If he can do so, tailback Victor Anderson should have success.

West Virginia by 7