Lamar Jackson sat in a meeting room at Joan C. Edwards Stadium. Minutes before, he quarterbacked his third-ranked Louisville Cardinals to a 59-28 win over Marshall. For most of those four quarters, he had his way with the Thundering Herd defense. Jackson threw for 417 yards and five touchdowns, and ran for 62 yards and two more scores.
It was a jaw-dropping performance. If only Jackson was impressed with it as much as the rest of the crowd was. If only he was impressed with it at all.
"F," was his instant analysis of his performance.
Four hundred and seventy-nine total yards?
Seven total touchdowns?
An "F?"
How?
"How many completions did I have?" Jackson asked.
Twenty-four.
"Out of what?" he asked.
Forty-four.
Jackson's response hit the air before the final "r" of "forty-four" rolled off the tongue.
"F."
In the position Jackson and the Cardinals find themselves in, maybe its best that the quarterback is his own worst critic.
It would be easy to get caught up in the hype. Jackson earned Sports Illustrated cover-boy honors after he tore through then-No. 2 Florida State to validate the buzz he and the Cardinals had been receiving. The cover's headline: "What. Just. Happened?"
There were a few minutes on Saturday, though, where perhaps the SI cover jinx looked like it might claim another victim. The Thundering Herd came as close as anyone this season to making Jackson look mortal.
The Herd closed Jackson's running lanes. The sophomore kept firing passes deep downfield, missing much more than he hit. He finished the first quarter completing 5 of 13 passes for 129 yards, a touchdown and an interception, while rushing for minus-1 yards on four carries. His lone highlight was his 71-yard touchdown bomb to James Quick after Rodney Allen slipped and fell in coverage.
That start annoyed him even after the game.
"I'm hot about that right now," he said.
Any worries about an off-night disappeared in a masterful second quarter, where Louisville's 7-0 lead became a 35-7 advantage thanks to three touchdown passes and a touchdown run from Jackson. On some throws, he showcased his arm strength, zipping throws to his receivers. His third TD pass of the night, to Cole Hikutini, showed deft touch as he lofted the ball into the end zone.
After the game, Marshall linebacker Chase Hancock suffered a slip of the tongue when he called Jackson "the Heisman winner." He quickly corrected himself, but it showed the type of season Jackson is having.
He ranks ninth in the country with 1,330 passing yards - and sixth in the country with 526 rushing yards, the only player to sit in the top 10 of both. He leads the country with 12 rushing touchdowns and also has 13 passing touchdowns. His 25 total touchdowns mark the eighth-best single-season total in Louisville history.
Louisville has played just four games.
Plenty of season remains for Jackson and Louisville, but at this point, staying healthy and steady should be enough to book a trip to the Heisman Trophy ceremony. And that spotlight should follow him the rest of the season. Jackson played before the second-largest crowd in Edwards Stadium history Saturday. He heads to Clemson this Saturday, and has a showdown at Houston on Nov. 17. Let that light shine, Jackson said.
"I think it's pretty cool," Jackson said. "Last year, we started out 0-3. We really didn't have a lot of fans like that. People were like, 'Louisville's going downhill.' This year, we're giving them something to look forward to."
The quarterback should give Louisville fans, opposing fans and casual fans alike all something to look forward to. Cardinal fans get to watch their team's march to a possible College Football Playoff berth. For everyone else, Jackson has them looking forward to the show.