LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Steve Kragthorpe knows the answers to all of Louisville's problems are right in front of the Cardinals.
They're just not grasping them. Literally.
The Cardinals (2-5) limp into Saturday's game against Arkansas State (2-4) trying to shake a pattern that's become all too familiar over the last season and a half. Louisville is competitive for awhile only to be undone by a couple of big plays that swing momentum the other way.
Those plays came early in last week's loss to No. 5 Cincinnati, as Louisville allowed the Bearcats to move up and down the field with ease. Kragthorpe believes his players are in place to make the plays, they're just not making them.
"We've got to get 'em on the ground, tackle 'em," he said. "We didn't tackle well as we needed to in space."
It's nothing new. Louisville's defensive woes date back to Kragthorpe's first season, and the numbers haven't gotten any better in the two years since. Louisville ranks last in the Big East in six defensive categories, including scoring defense, total defense and rushing defense.
Compounding problems for the Cardinals are an injury bug that's thinned out an already thin unit. Throw in the inability to get pressure on the quarterback without blitzing and it's easy to see Kragthorpe's frustration. Louisville is averaging just 1.57 sacks a game.
"If (the quarterback) can stand back there, pat it a couple of times and make decisions it's much easier to play," he said. "If you can get back there and get after his tail a little, knock him down a couple of times early in the game, then you start creating some indecision in his mind and he starts looking at the rush a little bit instead of looking downfield."
That didn't happen against the Bearcats, as backup quarterback Zach Collaros threw 253 yards and three touchdowns.
Things might not be any easier against the Red Wolves, who threw a major scare into No. 7 Iowa earlier this month and feature a quarterback in Corey Leonard who knows how to escape pressure. Leonard ran for 120 yards and threw for 149 last week as Arkansas State beat Florida International.
"They'll employ a lot of the same things we saw last week against Cincinnati in terms of the quarterback running game, which is tough when you've got a big guy who can run it and pass it," Kragthorpe said.
Louisville should have quarterback Adam Froman back after he left the Cincinnati game early with an elbow injury. It's unclear, however, whether sophomore running back Victor Anderson will be able to go after getting banged up against the Bearcats.
Anderson is hardly alone. Nearly a dozen Cardinals left the Cincinnati game early with injuries. Kragthorpe admitted he tried to make this week an off week while putting together the 2009 schedule but couldn't find a school to fill in an open date earlier in the year.
It means the Cardinals are about midway through a stretch of 11 games in 11 weeks. The busy schedule has taken its toll, though Kragthorpe refuses to use it as an excuse.
"I hoped we would stay healthy," he said. "We haven't stayed quite as healthy as I would have liked, but that's the nature of football."
