Tulane University
Louisville
Green Wave Fall To Louisville
Nov 3, 2001 | Football
Nov 3, 2001
By BRETT MARTEL
Associated Press Writer
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Dave Ragone threw for three touchdowns and ran for two more and the Cardinals stifled Tulane's normally potent offense in a 52-7 victory Saturday.
Henry Miller ran for 121 yards and two touchdowns to help Louisville (8-1, 4-0) move into a first-place tie in Conference USA with idle East Carolina. Ragone, who came out after three quarters, passed for 232 yards and ran for 56. T.J. Patterson added 104 yards on the ground.
Louisville, which racked up 573 offensive yards, set the tone with 137 rushing yards in the first quarter. Almost nothing went right for Tulane's defense, which has imploded with regularity this season, giving up about 40 points per game.
Louisville's first score came when Tulane (2-8, 1-5) flushed Ragone out of the pocket and the junior quarterback took off for a 27-yard scoring run that included a strong stiff-arm at the 10. Two drives later, Patterson made a slashing 33-yard run to the Tulane 8, followed by a 7-yard carry to set up a 1-yard end run by Ragone.
Louisville took a 21-7 first-quarter lead on a fourth-and-1, when Miller bounced outside for a 41-yard touchdown run.
Mewelde Moore, among the Conference USA rushing leaders with 1,135 yards coming in, was held to three yards on four carries in the first half. He finished with 27 yards rushing and was outgained on the ground by Ragone, who was the third leading rusher for Louisville.
Ragone also threw for more yards than Tulane's Patrick Ramsey, Conference USA's leading passer, who finished with 172 yards and was intercepted twice Saturday.
Tulane's only scoring came on a 43-yard pass from Ramsey to Tristan Smith on the Green Wave's first drive, which began after a Ragone fumble near mid field.
But after that first strike, Tulane's inability to sustain drives routinely gave Louisville starting field position near midfield. The Cardinals started eight drives at or beyond their own 35 line. Four ended in touchdowns.
Ragone threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Tony Stallings, a 1-yarder to Chip Mattingly and a 21-yarder to J.R. Russell.
