Louisville football: How the Cards can take down Virginia
Make Bryce Perkins beat you with his arm, not his legs
Virginia quarterback Bryce Perkins is a gamer. He’s one of the main reasons Virginia has won five of their first seven games. He currently ranks 45th out of 130 in passing yards on the season. In terms of that category, of Louisville’s remaining opponents, only Syracuse will pose a formidable threat through the air.
But Perkins hasn’t been perfect he’s thrown for eight touchdowns and seven interceptions in 2019. He’s a guy who as of late, has really been relying on his legs.
In Virginia’s blowout victory over Duke this past weekend, Perkins only completed 50 percent of his passes, going 13/26 for 141 yards, zero touchdowns and one interception. Simply, he beat the Blue Devils with his legs.
Film Study (Thread):
— Bennett Conlin (@BennettConlin) October 22, 2019
Virginia's offense wasn't perfect against Duke, but its willingness to trust its offensive line and run Bryce Perkins, especially in the red zone, seems like a sign of good things to come.
The Perkins power runs near the goal line were effective. pic.twitter.com/MbLJWP3F4G
Perkins ran for not one, not two, but three touchdowns against Duke on Saturday. The Cardinals need to avoid letting a repeat of that performance happen.
The Cardinals have yet to face a quarterback with this type of mobility in 2019, it will be a drastic change from pocket passer Trevor Lawrence last weekend.
There will be designed runs for Perkins and he will also make things up as he goes along. To beat the Cavaliers, the Cardinals can’t let the broken plays turn into first downs or touchdowns.