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MVP Brohm leads Louisville past Wake Forest

Jan 3, 2007 - 6:51 AM MIAMI (Ticker) -- Louisville was glad it had Brian Brohm under center for this bowl game.

Brohm threw for the third-most yardage in Orange Bowl history as the No. 5 Cardinals posted a 24-13 victory over No. 15 Wake Forest.

Brohm, the Orange Bowl Most Valuable Player, completed 24-of-31 passes for 311 yards for Louisville (12-1), which set a school record for wins in a season.

"This is a huge win for the program," Brohm said. "The entire offense did a great job tonight. The line blocked and the receivers did a great job catching the ball. This was a total team effort tonight."

Only current NFL quarterbacks Tom Brady and Matt Leinart have thrown for more yards in an Orange Bowl than Brohm.

Anthony Allen scored two touchdowns, including a 21-yard TD reception from wide receiver Patrick Carter with 6:02 left in the second period to put Louisville up, 10-3, at halftime. Allen's second score came with 12:37 left in the fourth quarter, giving the Cardinals a 17-13 lead.

Kolby Smith rushed for 81 yards on 16 carries and Brock Bolen added 28 yards, including an 18-yard TD with 5:05 remaining to end all scoring.

"It's great to be at the Orange Bowl," Louisville coach Bobby Petrino said. "This is a first-class organization. I have to thank our fans, they were great. We played a great game all around."

Brohm's favorite target was Harry Douglas, who caught an Orange Bowl record-tying 10 passes for 165 yards.

"Brohm is a smart guy, a smart quarterback," Douglas said. "He throws the ball where we need to have it and puts us in great position and I love him."

With the Cardinals' win, the Big East Conference improved to 4-0 in bowl games this season.

Riley Skinner went 21-of-33 for 272 yards, a touchdown and one interception for Wake Forest, which lost a bowl game for the first time in four appearances.

"I can't say I'm satisfied with losing, no one can, but we played hard," Skinner said. "We shot ourselves in the foot a few times. I had an interception, but it's football, everyone makes mistakes. Our mistakes came at bad times, but we'll bounce back."

Skinner was sacked four times for the Demon Deacons, who were outgained 457 to 386 by the Cardinals.

"We are proud of our kids," Wake Forest coach Jim Grobe said. "They played hard, but we made too many mistakes tonight."