Cincinnati vs. Louisville 2012: Bearcats face identity crisis after overtime loss at Louisville

Louisville kicker John Wallace was carried off the field Friday night on the shoulders of his teammates after he drilled a 30-yard field goal, giving the Cardinals a 34-31 win over visiting Cincinnati.

The Bearcats head coach was given no such honor. He called timeout before a high snap that went through the holder's hands, and Louisville was given new life.

The Bearcats (5-2, 1-1 Big East) lone possession in overtime ended in an interception thrown by junior Munchie Legaux, the last of three picks he threw in the game. He was 13-for-28 with 157 yards and a touchdown along with the three turnovers. He also added 32 yards and a score on the ground.

Despite his poor performance in Friday's loss, Matt Opper of Down The Drive, SB Nation's Bearcats blog, is not giving up on Legaux:

"Munchie Legaux is the QB of this team, and will be for the rest of the season, barring injury. Brendon Kay had a great opportunity to win the job before tonight's game, and he did not respond. Munchie was better in practice this week, and by miles. He effectively re-won the job, and despite the loss, Munchie will almost certainly be leading the squad against Syracuse."

The Bearcats' issues aren't going to be simple to solve, certainly not by the act of replacing the quarterback, Opper said. It goes deeper than that. After dropping two straight games (the first was a 29-23 loss at Toledo Oct. 20), it's becoming something of an identity crisis in Cincinnati:

"If you polled Bearcats players, what they do, what they live and breathe by, on either side of the ball, but offense in particular there wouldn't be much of a consensus. That's a problem, that's the problem with this team right now. Its a problem without a solution as simple as replacing the starting QB with the back up. Its the Football equivalent of throwing bad money after good."

Cincinnati next hosts Syracuse Nov. 3.