LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Louisville coach Bobby Petrino still thinks he made the right decision in calling a timeout that gave South Florida a chance to regroup and send Saturday's game into overtime, eventually winning 31-28.
The Bulls trailed 21-14 and were out of timeouts as they drove to the Louisville 1. Confused players were scrambling on both sides of the ball as the clock dipped below 20 seconds.
Then Petrino called one of the Cardinals' two remaining timeouts with 16 seconds left. That allowed the Bulls to switch quarterbacks and set up an option play that scored.
"Our defense wasn't ready for the personnel substitution from the previous play," Petrino said at his weekly news conference Monday. "We ... would have ended up with six defensive backs on the field against two running backs and two tight ends. We needed to take the timeout."
Petrino said he asked defensive coaches if they wanted to use another timeout, but they said they didn't. He wished he would have overruled them.
"We actually had a misalignment on the play. The safety lined up wrong," Petrino said. "We were a man short over there, which was quite embarrassing."
UM KICKER HONORED: Miami's Jon Peattie was selected as one of the Lou Groza Award's Top Three Stars for Week 6. The freshman had a school-record five field goals, including the game-winner with 11 seconds left, against West Virginia. Also cited for the award, presented by the Orange Bowl, were Southern California's Ryan Killeen and Northern Illinois' Steve Azar.
Miami's game against visiting Temple on Oct. 18 will be regionallly televised by ESPN at noon.
UCF PLAYER SPECIAL: Central Florida wide receiver Tavaris Capers was named Mid-American Conference East Division Special Teams Player of the Week for returning a punt 52 yards for his first career touchdown in a 19-10 victory over Buffalo.
SEC HONORS: Mississippi back Von Hutchins was named defensive player of the week after getting a sack, interception and pass deflection in a 20-17 win at Florida.
C-USA HONORS: Southern Mississippi linebacker Michael Boley and kick returner John Eubanks were named Conference USA players of the week. In a win over Cincinnati, Boley had 18 tackles, including 12 solo stops and a sack. He also forced and recovered a fumble that set up a touchdown. Eubanks had four kickoff returns for 152 yards, including a 94-yarder for a TD.
