Michael Bush rushed for 115 yards and two touchdowns and Art Carmody tied a school record with four field goals as No. 24 Louisville survived a wild start and beat Pittsburgh 42-20 on Thursday.
Louisville (6-2, 2-2 Big East Conference) has won two straight after losing its first two league games and temporarily falling out of the top 25. The Cardinals became bowl-eligible with the win in front of a record crowd of 42,692 at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium.
Pitt (4-5, 3-2) had a three-game winning streak snapped. The Panthers must win their final two games, against Connecticut and No. 18 West Virginia, if they are to extend their streak of consecutive bowl appearances to six.
Bush's second score, a 3-yard run in the third quarter, was his 20th rushing touchdown of the season, tying the school record set by Lenny Lyles in 1957 and matched by Eric Shelton last season. Bush left the game after that with a sprained left foot. X-rays taken Thursday were negative, and Louisville spokesman Rocco Gasparro said Bush would undergo a MRI exam on Friday.
Bush, who had 16 carries, also caught four passes for 59 yards.
Carmody kicked field goals of 46, 47, 32 and 36 yards, matching the school single-game record set by Nate Smith against Houston in 2000. The 46-yarder was a career-best, but Carmody booted a 47-yarder minutes later.
Entering the game, Carmody had attempted only eight field goals this season, making six.
Louisville trailed in the final minute of the first half before Carmody's 47-yarder, which put the Cardinals up 22-20 at the break. Louisville scored on its first three second-half possessions, with Bush's second touchdown and Carmody's 32- and 36-yard field goals, and led 35-20 entering the fourth quarter.
Pitt reached the Louisville 22 early in the fourth quarter before penalties set the Panthers back and forced a punt. Louisville took over with 9:44 left and ran more than 9 minutes off the clock before Kolby Smith capped a 16-play, 80-yard drive with a 4-yard touchdown run.
Brian Brohm completed 21-of-31 passes for 247 yards for Louisville, which finished with 467 yards of offense. Pitt finished with 260 yards of offense.
West Virginia 45, Connecticut 13
Pat White ran for two touchdowns and threw for another in his first start, leading No. 18 West Virginia to a 45-13 win over Connecticut on Wednesday.
First-place West Virginia (7-1, 4-0 Big East) showed no signs of sluggishness from an 18-day layoff.
The Mountaineers built a 35-3 halftime lead, getting a pair of touchdowns following turnovers. The defense limited the UConn Huskies (4-4, 1-3) to 12 rushing yards and 129 overall, the fewest allowed by West Virginia in three seasons.
The nation's ninth-best rushing attack used a rotation of backs to compile 228 yards against the Huskies.
White ran for 63 yards on 12 carries, and threw 7-of-16 for 106 yards.
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