'Those guys are dogs': How Louisville's running backs showed growth in win over USF

There was no way Trevion Cooley was going to let Tiyon Evans beat him.

The Louisville sophomore running back admitted he had been running soft when he entered Saturday’s game against South Florida. Then Cooley saw Evans take off for a 10-yard run to start the contest and his competitive nature took over.

Cooley ended the day with two wins: as a team — Louisville beat USF handily 41-3 — and individually as the Cardinals’ second-leading rusher behind quarterback Malik Cunningham, who led the way with 113 rushing yards. Cooley tallied 75 yards on 11 carries while Evans notched 51 yards on 13 carries. Evans does have the honor of scoring in every game he’s played in after reaching the end zone against USF on a 3-yard run in the fourth quarter. Cooley almost had a 23-yard touchdown Saturday, but it was a review showed he stepped out of bounds inches short of the goal line.

“We feed off of each other,” he said. “It's great energy, great love in that room.”

The competition in Louisville’s running backs room is what’s made the unit the strength of the Cardinals’ offense so far.

“It is nice to play all those guys and keep them fresh,” U of L coach Scott Satterfield said. “Then when you need those tough yards, they are able to break those tackles. That has been really nice to have that luxury. It is also a competition at practice every day. They are competing to see who is going to get the most carries and the most opportunities."

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Evans returned as the starter Saturday after missing last week with a hamstring injury. Jawhar Jordan started in his place against Florida State and was still a highlight in this week’s outing. Jordan had eight carries for 38 yards, which included a 30-yard run to start Louisville’s third drive of the game. That series ended with wide receiver Jaelin Carter making a diving 26-yard diving touchdown reception from Cunningham to put the Cardinals up 14-0.

The Cardinals' running back room is still missing Jalen Mitchell, who was out for a second straight week with a lower leg injury. It’ll likely be the case as well for at least one more week. Jordan, Evans and Cooley proved the last two weeks they won’t have trouble keeping the ship afloat, though.

In the loss to Florida State — which saw the Cardinals without Mitchell and Evans due to injuries — Jordan handled the bulk of the work with 17 carries for 91 yards while Cooley added 10 carries, 34 yards and a TD. A week later with Evans back in the rotation, the trio of hard-running backs combined for 164 rushing yards and a touchdown on 32 carries (5.1 yards per carry) Saturday.

Those three have 490 yards this year for a run game that ranks 36th in the nation.

They’ve got the admiration of their quarterback.

“Those guys are dogs, in my opinion,” Cunningham said. "Whenever I get a chance to hand the ball off, I get caught up in watching them because of how much I want to see them break and run. It’s a blessing to have those guys behind me. I believe in them. They believe in me, and we're going to get this thing back on the road.”

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Cunningham's talents with the ball in his hands also add to what makes the Cardinals’ run game such a threat for opposing defenses. For a third straight game, the redshirt senior eclipsed 100 rushing yards, totaling 113 yards with three touchdowns on the ground against the Bulls over the weekend. He ripped off scoring runs of 40, 35 and 8 yards in the first half, the first time in his career he’s had three scores in one half.

“It puts pressure on defenses when you are able to run like that with him,” Satterfield said of Cunningham. “Hopefully, that opens up the throw game.”

Louisville’s running backs have contributed to the passing game of late, too. Each caught a pass Saturday for 24 combined yards. The Cardinals were already low on pass catchers, and losing Dee Wiggins to a season-ending foot injury only added salt in the wound. Having three more receivers gives the team more versatility in the air.

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Satterfield won’t have to ask Cooley twice to catch a pass. The former slot receiver at Knightdale (North Carolina) High School welcomes the opportunity and has excelled at it. Against Florida State, he caught a touchdown pass then had a 4-yard catch against South Florida.

“Catching the football is the thing I love,” Cooley said. “I'm glad they (the coaching staff) get me involved in that, but also, just put me one-on-one with linebackers just to see my catching abilities. It's pretty cool, too.”

Added Satterfield: “We're always going to try to utilize the backs in the throw game. … We have good confidence in those guys to make plays in the passing game.”

Reach Louisville football, women's basketball and baseball beat writer Alexis Cubit at acubit@gannett.com and follow her on Twitter at @Alexis_Cubit.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville football vs. USF: Running backs have big game in win