Louisville 29, N.C. State 10

9/29/2007 6:37 PM

By JOEDY McCREARY
AP Sports Writer

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) -Louisville's maligned defense forced a season-high five turnovers and the Cardinals overcame Brian Brohm's least productive performance of the season in a 29-10 victory over North Carolina State on Saturday night.

Brock Bolen rushed for a career-high 112 yards and a touchdown, as the Cardinals ground game rolled up 247 yards to help take the pressure off Brohm and avoid yet another shootout.

Brohm followed his career-high 555-yard performance last week against Syracuse by completing 20-of-33 passes for 251 yards - his lowest yardage total since Rutgers held him to 163 in a loss last November. Brohm threw a scoring pass to George Stripling and had one interception.

Art Carmody added three field goals and kicked the NCAA-record 227th extra point of his career for the Cardinals (3-2), who snapped a two-game losing streak that knocked them from the national rankings.

But the biggest surprise might have come from Louisville's defense. A week after allowing four touchdown passes and 423 yards through the air in a second straight upset, the Cardinals clamped down on the punchless Wolfpack (1-4) by forcing three fumbles, intercepting two passes and holding them to 85 yards rushing.

Their final takeaway - Lamar Myles' recovery of Andre Brown's fourth-quarter fumble near midfield - led to the 18-yard TD toss from Brohm to Stripling that completed the scoring and iced the game.

The productivity of Louisville's passing game likely suffered because Brohm's favorite target was held out. Leading receiver Harry Douglas was in uniform but didn't play after he was hurt in the fourth quarter of last week's loss to Syracuse.

Still, it was enough to deal the woeful Wolfpack (1-4) their 11th straight loss against a team from the Bowl Subdivision. Harrison Beck was 17-of-28 for 181 yards with two interceptions before he injured his collarbone midway through the third period.

One-time starter Daniel Evans relieved him and accounted for N.C. State's only touchdown when he flipped a 2-yard scoring pass to Ced Hickman that pulled the Wolfpack within 16-10 late in the third.

The Cardinals pulled away in the fourth, scoring on Bolen's 2-yard scoring run and adding Brohm's touchdown pass to Stripling.

Carmody followed the Cardinals' first touchdown - Anthony Allen's 7-yard scoring run that capped the game's opening drive - with his record-breaking extra point, surpassing Bowling Green's Shawn Suisham, who had 226 from 2001-04.

The Cardinals also were without defensive lineman Peanut Whitehead, who left the team to deal with family issues.