Louisville Football: Do the Cards Actually Have a Quarterback Controversy?

Louisville football may have a quarterback battle on its hands after Puma Pass was replaced by Malik Cunningham against Indiana State.

Louisville football is in a situation most would not have seen coming going into their tilt against Indiana State on Saturday.

After struggling mightily in the first half with Puma Pass behind center on Saturday night, Bobby Petrino elected to play back up Malik Cunningham for the majority of the 3rd and 4th quarters.

The result was four straight scoring drives for the Cards, and an excellent passing and rushing attack from the redshirt freshman Cunningham.

Pass’s Struggles

If you just take a look at the box score against Indiana State, Pass’s numbers are pedestrian. The numbers alone don’t seem to warrant a benching, but they don’t tell a full story.

Pass, just like against Alabama, seemed to do a decent job of getting the offense to move for a few plays, but then they would stall out and be forced to punt.

The only touchdown the Cards could muster in the first half was punt return for a score by Rodjay Burns.

Pass failed to move the Cards at all. Here were the drives when he was in the game at QB:

• 3 plays, 4 yards- punt
• 6 plays, 30 yards- interception
• 5 plays, 15 yards- punt
• 5 plays, 17 yards- punt
• 5 plays, 71 yards- fumble
• 3 plays, -1 yard- punt
• 3 plays, 2 yards- punt

Pass played the majority of the game going in and out of the locker room for lightning delays, and being forced to go conservative due to the borderline hurricane-like conditions.

That said- it was Indiana State. The Sycamores team didn’t win a game last season, and has won 1 game in the last 15 mostly against FCS-level competition. ISU allowed 45 points per game against terrible competition last season.

Simply put, the Sycamores are flat-out terrible.

Although Pass had to endure the poor conditions, so did the lowly Indiana State defense. This was his chance to get comfortable in Louisville’s offense, and establish a connection with his absolutely loaded receiving corps.

Pass did not get any offense going at all for the Cards, and his poor throw on the interception led to the lone score for Indiana State.

Cunningham’s Instant Impact

Where Pass left off, Cunningham picked right up and sparked the Cardinals offense.

Let’s take a look at every drive that Cunningham was in at quarterback:

• 11 plays, 83 yards- Touchdown
• 4 plays, 23 yards- Touchdown
• 5 plays, 32 yards- Field Goal
• 4 plays, 56 yards- Touchdown

Cunningham was injured on his fifth drive, and held out for precautionary measures.

When Cunningham took over, the offense was night and day from what it looked like under Puma Pass. Much of Cunningham’s game is similar to what we saw with Lamar Jackson at quarterback. He is an electrifying runner, and is right on target with his arm.

Cunningham ran a much different offense than what we saw with Pass in the game, as well.

What is worrisome about his game is his lack of an arm. Cunningham can throw it deep, but it is not with the type of zip that you will see from most college quarterbacks.

Against some better opponents, one could surmise that defenses would load the box and be totally comfortable with leaving corners one-on-one against Cunningham. That is where his weakness lies, and where Louisville’s coaching staff is sure to be concerned going forward.

Who is Louisville’s Best Option?

The quarterback competition needs to be about who is the best option going forward for the Cards.

Although Cunningham looked fantastic on Saturday night, that doesn’t tell the full story for this team. Pass has been the heir apparent to Lamar Jackson for nearly three years. Now that it is Pass’s time, the coaches are likely to roll with him and endure some growing pains along the way.

Pass played seven drives over the course of four hours, and it was absolutely pouring down rain. Cunningham came into the game when the rain had subsided, and was able to play four consecutive drives with the defense forcing three and outs on three out of four possessions from the Sycamores.

With that being said, Cunningham is a great option behind him. The Cards are in good hands if Pass is ever unable to go.

If there is one thing that we learned, regardless of who plays, it is that Malik Cunningham needs to be on the field in some role much more frequently. He is an electric runner and playmaker.

Puma Pass seems to be Louisville’s best option going forward, but look for Cunningham to see a lot more game action in 2018.