SPORTS

Cardinals' loss to Clemson a haunting one

Jeff Greer
@jeffgreer_cj

Sometimes losses keep players or coaches or even fans awake long after a game is over.

Such was the case for University of Louisville football coach Bobby Petrino on Saturday night after his team's gut-wrenching 23-17 loss at Clemson.

For the second time this season, Louisville was one play away from winning in a tough road environment. The Cardinals (5-2) could easily be undefeated going into this Saturday's home game against North Carolina State.

"That's just where I would rather be," Petrino said. "You think about everything when you lose. None of it is good."

But Petrino said Monday that his team came back from Clemson this weekend and started the week-long process of game preparation in a business-as-usual manner.

Louisville and North Carolina State (4-3) kick off at 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium. It's the homecoming game and the final contest before Louisville's first open weekend of the season.

Oh, and that Oct. 30 home showdown with No. 2 Florida State is getting closer and closer by the day.

"Our players had a good attitude," Petrino said. "This is the most important thing – to put a hard loss like this behind you.

"We talked a lot about what you learn from it and how you get better. One of our goals is to win all of our home games and this is where we get started."

Still, as Petrino, his staff and his players reviewed the film from Saturday's game, it was hard to not reach a continuous conclusion.

It was a winnable game, and Louisville was in prime position to do so in the game's final minute.

An argument could be made that Louisville could've built momentum earlier in the contest and pulled away, especially with Clemson's best offensive player, freshman quarterback Deshaun Watson, no longer in the game.

Obviously that didn't happen, and Louisville's final possession has been under the microscope since Saturday night.

Petrino took the blame on Monday for The Spike – his decision to spike the ball on third-and-goal at the Clemson 2-yard line in order to stop the clock and set up Louisville's go-to play on fourth down.

He also acknowledged Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables' comments on Saturday night that Clemson had studied Western Kentucky film from last season and thought Petrino might call the rollout right pass that he called on fourth-and-goal.

"We had two plays that we could've called down there and I wish I would've called the other one," Petrino said. "You stay awake all night thinking, 'You dummy. Why didn't you call the other one?' "

On Sunday, even with that lingering disappointment, Petrino said the staff reiterated a positive message to its team as the players ran through workouts and prepared for the week of practice.

"We need to stick together," he said.

"Let's be honest: Defense has been playing lights out and doing everything real well. Offensively, we're not doing our job well enough to win games on the road in that type of environment. They really understand that the biggest thing we have to do is be a team and stick together."

Reach U of L beat writer Jeff Greer at (502) 582-4044 and follow him on Twitter (@jeffgreer_cj).​