Nevertheless, the Cardinals overcame three turnovers and pulled themselves together behind backup quarterback Cantwell for a ragged 24-6 victory over Kansas State on Saturday.

Starting in place of Heisman-hopeful Brohm, who was injured in last week’s 31-7 rout of then-No. 17 Miami, Cantwell threw for 173 yards and a touchdown.

But like the entire Louisville attack, he was inconsistent. In one careless stretch in the second half, the Cardinals turned the ball over on three consecutive possessions in defense of their highest ranking ever.

“I feel good about getting the win in a tough stadium like this against a pretty good defense,” Cantwell said, “but I made some mistakes, and I’ve got to get some things adjusted this week and get better,”

Expected to start two or three games while Brohm recovers from a thumb injury, Cantwell was 18-for-26 for 173 yards.

“He was hot and cold, and what happened was it took us out of our tempo,” Louisville coach Bobby Petrino said. “Sometimes he sat at the line of scrimmage a little bit long and allowed them to talk him into some checks.”

Louisville linebacker Nate Harris insisted the Cardinals did not suffer a letdown, even though the Wildcats’ unheralded defense forced three turnovers and held the nation’s leading offense 26 points and 170 yards below its average.

“Everybody was talking about a letdown, but we knew we weren’t going to come out here and let down,” he said. “Coming into this hostile environment at Kansas State, they’re a good team, so we just came out here and executed our plays to the fullest.”

It was a defense which in two road games has given up only six points that kept the Cardinals (4-0) from ever being in danger.

“I am very proud of the way our defense played,” Petrino said. “They played fast and they played aggressive. They made plays and bailed the offense out when the offense turned the ball over.”

Thomas Clayton’s 69-yard scoring run after Louisville had taken a 24-0 lead in the fourth quarter enabled the Wildcats to avoid their first shutout at home since 1991.

“We are not going to worry about the offense,” said Kansas State safety Marcus Watts, who intercepted a Cantwell pass and returned it 58 yards to the Cardinals 19. “We are going to do what we do and that is play good defense.”

Cantwell directed a crisp, impressive 97-yard touchdown drive on the Cardinals’ first possession, capped by Harry Douglas’ 19-yard catch.

But Louisville managed only 87 total yards the rest of the half in taking 10-0 lead.