Caught up in the moment after the win over Notre Dame, an occasional sports analyst at WAVE-3 wanted University of Louisville football fans to say the win was the greatest in the program’s history, expecting them to agree. Fortunately, he was asking knowledgeable fans who, though exuberant, would set him straight.
While it was a good one, the win over Notre Dame is down the list of memorable UofL milestones. Getting a matchup with Notre Dame was the hard part, coming only after a shakeup of the college football landscape and conference realignments. Fans were more ecstatic that the game had actually happened, and relieved that that Cardinals had followed through with the win.
Since the question has come up, people are ranking UofL’s most significant wins. Eric Crawford has his list here, but I like mine better:
1. Jan. 2, 2013 — Louisville 33, Florida 23
BCS Sugar Bowl in New Orleans. A game scripted in Hollywood, matching 22nd ranked Louisville against No. 4 Florida, with no one giving the Cardinals a chance to win. On the first play from scrimmage, Terrell Floyd intercepts a Florida pass, dashing 34 yards for a touchdown. Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, recovering quickly from a brutal hit on his first play from scrimmage, completes 20 of 32 passes for 266 yards and two touchdowns, including an acrobatic catch by DeVante Parker in the end zone. UofL is in command from beginning to end,
2. Jan. 2, 2007 — Louisville 24, Wake Forest 13
BCS Orange Bowl in Miami. An estimated 35,000 UofL fans travel for Louisville’s first BCS bowl. The Cardinals come from behind with two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, a one-yarder by Anthony Allen and an 18-yarder by Brock Bolen. Brian Brohm named most valuable player. UofL would have been competitive with either Florida or Ohio State, the participants in the national championship game that season.
3. Jan. 1, 1991 — Louisville 34, Alabama 7
Fiesta Bowl in Tempe, Ariz. Louisville’s first bowl game in 13 years, made possible when some other schools refused to participate because Arizona didn’t observe Martin Luther King holiday. UofL takes advantage of the political football to grab the national spotlight. Browning Nagel connects early with Andrea Ware on a 70-yard touchdown pass and UofL holds a 25-0 lead after the first quarter. Bama fans have been respectful ever since.
4. Sept. 26, 2002 — Louisville 26, Florida State 20
On a rain-soaked night before a crowd of 42,000 at Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium, senior running back Henry Miller dashes 25 yards for a touchdown on the second play from scrimmage in overtime to give Louisville a 26-20 win over the fourth-ranked Seminoles. UofL’s Anthony Floyd had intercepted a pass by FSU’s Chris Rix near the goal line a play earlier to set up Miller’s run. Quarterback Dave Ragone completes 15 of 27 passes for 182 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 43 yards. The goal posts come down.
5. Nov. 2, 2006 — Louisville 44, West Virginia 34
Fifth-ranked Louisville versus third-ranked West Virginia, a battle between unbeaten Big East teams on a Black Out night at PJCS. WVU quarterback Pat White runs for 125 yards and passes for 225 more, and Steve Slaton racks up 156 yards and a touchdown. Not enough. UofL forces three costly Mountaineer fumbles. Brian Brohm is passing for 325 yards, including a touchdown toss to Mario Urrutia. Anthony Allen would score twice, Trent Guy once, and Art Carmody is making good on three field goals.
6. Nov. 22, 2014 — Louisville 31, Notre Dame 28
Freshman quarterback Reggie Bonnafon will score two touchdowns and pass for another to DeVante Parker in the first-ever matchup between the schools. A signature win over one of the sport’s most revered programs. A showdown made possible only with UofL’s entry into the Atlantic Coast Conference but a win over the Irish earning Louisville some overdue respect from college football’s old-line establishment. A memorable victory but
7. Dec. 31, 2004 — Louisville 44, Boise State 40
Liberty Bowl, Memphis, Tenn. Ninth-ranked Louisville versus 10th-ranked Boise State in a battle between teams denied BCS access by the pollsters. UofL will end Boise State’s 22-game winning streak when Kerry Rhodes intercepts a pass in the end zone to preserve the win. Quarterback Stefan Lefors passes for two touchdowns and runs for another, 192 yards in the air, 76 yards rushing. Michael Bush will add 96 yards.
8. Nov. 29, 2012 — Louisville 20, Rutgers 17
Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater too banged up to start, with a broken bone in wrist and an ankle sprain. Relieving beleaguered Matt Stein, bring life to the UofL offense, Bridgewater engineers a 90-yard drive and a touchdown pass to Jeremy Wright. Following a Rutgers’ fumble, Bridgewater connects with DeVante Parker for a 20-yard touchdown. John Wallace kicks a 29-yard field goal with 1:41 left to give UofL the win, and UofL is bound for the Sugar Bowl.
9. Sept. 2, 2000 — Louisville 40, Kentucky 34
A steady drizzle turns into a torrential downpour and lightning in the third quarter, forcing fans to find shelter for 72 minutes. The UK band continues to play during the storm until athletic director Larry Ivy sends word for them to stop, saying later, “Metal instruments. We may need a refresher course in Band 101.” UofL’s Anthony Floyd intercepts Jared Lorenzen’s pass on the first possession of overtime, and Tony Stallings breaks free for 25 yards on the next play to give UofL the win.
10. Sept. 25, 1993 — Louisville 41, Texas 10
Texas would bring Longhorn mascot Bevo to old Cardinal Stadium at the Fairgrounds expecting an easy win. The visitors would be bitterly disappointed, with Ralph Dawkins catching a screen pass from Jeff Brohm to scamper 75 yards for a touchdown on the second play from scrimmage. Brohm completes 14 of 23 pass attempts for 293 yards. Dawkins would total 117 yards rushing and 95 more on receptions. Anthony Shelman will score two touchdowns, one of them his signature diving leap over the line. Howard Schnellenberger in a dark suit and tie strolling the sideline, with that exalted vision of his for Louisville’s football future. He was promoting a UofL football stadium as well.
Re: the Fiesta Bowl, I thought U of L could (and probably should) have hung 50 on the Tide that day, if Howard had been willing to call a pass play inside the 10-yard line.
I like your choices, Charlie, having seen 8/10 myself in person! Very well thought out. Would #11 be the 1993 Liberty Bowl win over Michigan State?
P.S. And I’d like to nominate the worst bowl game experience as the 2000 (frozen) Liberty Bowl loss to Colorado State.
Tom, the frigid weather is the only thing I remember about the Colorado State game.
Yes, but…..gotta go with that Fiesta Bowl win because we had come from nowhere to somewhere. With that bowl win, the Cards gained real national attention and it has been exciting ever since. No more ho hum games at the old fairgrounds baseball/football stadium. Propelled to so many highlights from then on. Go Cards!