Louisville football: 3 things we learned from their win over Purdue
Louisville football won 35-28 over the Purdue Boilermakers to start the season. It was closer than they’d hoped, but the Cardinals improve to 1-0.
More: 2017 Louisville football game by game predictions
The Louisville Cardinals looked like they wouldn’t recover from an early deficit but they bounced back against the Purdue Boilermakers. Quarterback Lamar Jackson waited until the very end to put the team on his shoulders. He finished the game with 19 carries and 99 rushing yards with his legs.
The Cardinals came from behind to win a close one late but they never looked out of sorts, despite the deficit.
The Boilermakers scored first on the 16th ranked Cardinals and quarterback Lamar Jackson played from behind for pretty much the whole game. Louisville led briefly 10-7 for part of the second quarter but the Boilermaker kept the pressure on all game. There were six lead changes in the game.
Purdue had two early turnovers in the first half and lead 14-10 at halftime. They kept the Cardinals explosive offense off the field for as they could but Bobby Petrino knew he could dial up a big play at any time.
Jackson connected with junior wide receiver Jaylen Smith on eight receptions for 117 receiving yards. Redshirt freshman wide receiver Dez Fitzpatrick had four receptions for 95 receiving yards and a touchdown. The offense looked good but it still has some kinks to work out, particularly in the running game. Here were the biggest takeaways.