There was Big East football on Friday night, and by God it was glorious.
Okay, maybe it was just fun.
No. 16 Louisville had not defeated Cincinnati for the Keg of Nails since 2007, but came away with a 34-31 overtime win over the Bearcats Friday night in a drenched Papa Johns Stadium.
Cincy quarterback Munchie Legaux said earlier this week that he thought he was better than Louisville’s Teddy Bridgewater. Though Legaux threw three picks Friday night, he certainly was stating his case when he threw a clutch 26-yard score to receiver Damon Julian to tie the game at 31 with one minute left in regulation. But Legaux also threw a costly interception in the first overtime that, frankly, was completely on him.
But Legaux’s INT was only the start. Bearcats coach Butch Jones attempted to ice Louisville kicker John Wallace on the Cards’ first possession -- except the snap was bad. On UL’s second attempt, Wallace split the uprights and the Cardinals pulled out a dramatic victory.
At 8-0, Louisville controls its own Big East destiny. The Cardinals’ next three games -- Temple, at Syracuse and UConn -- should all be business-as-usual; the season-finale at Rutgers, however, could very well be for the Big East title. That’s assuming the Scarlet Knights can beat Cincinnati here in a few weeks.
Cincinnati suffered its second consecutive loss. The Bearcats’ Big East title hopes aren’t completely gone, but they’ll need some help and can’t afford another loss.
Either way, the Big East race is actually shaping up to be rather interesting.