You never want to take any opponent lightly, but this is perhaps the biggest mismatch of the season. Stanford is 2nd in the Pac-12 in total offense, 3rd in passing, 1st in rushing, 1st in points per game, 1st in total defense, 5th in pass defense, 1st in run defense, 1st in scoring defense, 1st in red zone offense, 1st in red zone defense, and 2nd in 3rd down conversions. Washington State, on the other hand, is last in total offense, last in passing offense, 11th in rushing, last in scoring, 10th in total defense, 11th in pass defense, 10th in run defense, 11th in scoring defense, 8th in red zone offense, 11th in red zone defense, and last in 3rd down offense. The two teams could not be further apart.
#4 Stanford @ Washington State
Martin Stadium
Pullman, WA
October 15, 2011
Business as usual for Stanford Cardinal doesn't give an inch against Washington State
PULLMAN, WA - All week long, Stanford coach Brian Kudron tried his best to hammer his players about not taking Washington State lightly, about focusing on the task at hand and not looking ahead to Washington next week, or USC after that.
His team listened. Stanford marched right down the field on their opening possession and put a touchdown on the board, and save for one offensive miscue that resulted in a sack and an Andrew Luck fumble that was returned for a touchdown, Washington State never threatened to score, as Stanford continued rolling, 48-7.
Luck threw two touchdowns, while Anthony Wilkerson ran for three. The Cardinal defense was on fire, registering eight sacks and collecting five turnovers, the last of which was returned for a touchdown by Chase Thomas.
As previously mentioned, things get significantly more important from here, as Washington comes to The Farm next week, and then Stanford faces powerful USC in the Coliseum in Los Angeles.
Stanford's coaches and players will never admit it publically, but they've been on high alert about the looming matchup with Washington for a couple weeks now, and for good reason. The Huskies are a very talented squad and are anxious to prove themselves against a big name opponent like Stanford. Sophomore quarterback Keith Price has a 12 to 3 TD to interception ratio, and is completing his passes at a 60% clip. The Huskies' bread and butter, however, is the running game, led by bowling ball tailback Chris Polk (538 yards) and his understudy Jesse Callier (386). Jermaine Kearse and Devin Aguilar give the Huskies a pair of very solid wideouts, and freshman tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins is a star in the making. One thing that could hinder UW's offense is the probable absence of left tackle Senio Kelemete.
Defensively, Washington has the size to match up against Stanford's mauling offensive line, especially in the middle with 334-pound defensive tackle Alameda Ta'amu. The main question for Washington's defense will be the linebackers, who are very young and inexperienced outside of senior MIKE linebacker Cort Dennison. The Huskies' secondary is physical and fast, led by corners Desmond Trufant and Quinton Richardson, and safeties Nate Fellner and Sean Parker.
Washington @ #2 Stanford
Stanford Stadium
Palo Alto, CA
October 22, 2011
Cardinal D flexes its muscles Skov leads Stanford's defense in a smothering performance against Washington
PALO ALTO, CA - Stanford's coaches were right.
All week long they told everyone who would listen that Washington was a talented and dangerous opponent, and the Huskies didn't disappoint, matching Stanford blow for blow in the trenches all game long, and doing what no other opponent had been able to do against the Cardinal this year: control the ball and win the time of possession battle.
But even then, Stanford's defense answered the bell, led by crushing linebacker Shayne Skov, who made a crucial interception in the red zone in the third quarter, snuffing out Washington's offense and propelling the Cardinal to a gritty 20-3 win.
"Shayne was our MVP today," coach Brian Kudron said. "He's one of our leaders on defense for a reason. We usually go as he goes, and he brought his A game today, and set the tone for our defense as a whole."
It was a sputtering, uneven day for Stanford's offense. Andrew Luck never got into a rhythm, the running game was knocked off balance by Washington's defense, and the lack of any sustained drive stifled the offense's efforts for most of the day. The Cardinal defense never relented though, and that was enough for Luck to connect on two touchdown passes, both off screen plays, to Chris Owusu and Stepfan Taylor.
The competition continues to ratchet up next week, as the Cardinal heads south to Los Angeles to face the still-dangerous and still-talented USC Trojans.
Washington Huskies at Stanford Cardinal
Oct 22, 2011
1ST
2ND
3RD
4TH
SCORE
Washington Huskies (4-3, 2-2)
3
0
0
0
3
#2 Stanford Cardinal (7-0, 5-0)
0
13
0
7
20
Team Stats Comparison
WASH
STAN
Total Offense
274
289
Rushing Yards
109
85
Passing Yards
165
204
First Downs
14
8
Punt Return Yards
9
13
Kick Return Yards
78
67
Total Yards
361
369
Turnovers
3
0
3rd Down Converstion
8-19
4-13
4th Down Conversion
2-4
1-1
2-Point Conversion
0-0
0-0
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals
0/1
0/2
Penalties
5-40
2-15
Posession Time
28:04
19:56
Scoring Summary
FIRST QUARTER SCORING
WASH
STAN
4:51
(WASH) Folk, 28 yard FG
3
0
SECOND QUARTER SCORING
WASH
STAN
7:54
(STAN) Williamson, 23 yard FG
3
3
4:02
(STAN) Luck, 50 yard pass to Owusu (Williamson kick)
3
10
0:33
(STAN) Williamson, 26 yard FG
3
13
FOURTH QUARTER SCORING
WASH
STAN
4:41
(STAN) Luck, 39 yard pass to Taylor (Williamson kick)
As big as last week's matchup against Washington was, this week's showdown in the Coliseum against USC is gargantuan for Stanford. The mystique the Trojans created themselves under Pete Carroll is mostly gone now, but Lane Kiffin's roster is still supremely talented, led by star quarterback Matt Barkley (1614 yards, 13 TDs, 3 INTs), running back Marc Tyler (571 yards, 5.4 YPC, 6 TDs) and wideout Robert Woods (43 catches, 613 yards, 5 TDs). As is usually the case against Stanford, the ability of the opposing offensive line to hold up against the pressure will largely dictate how things go. The Trojans will need to maintain balance if they're going to penetrate through the Cardinal's seemingly invincible defense.
On the flip side, USC still boasts star power on their defense, but they have largely struggled as a unit, giving up over 22 points a game on the season. Worse, they are without starting linebacker Dion Bailey and starting corner Nickell Robey. They have several very disruptive defensive linemen, with Nick Perry, Wes Horton and Devon Kennard at end and Christian Tupou and Da'John Harris at tackle, but they sorely lack experience at linebacker (save for Chris Galippo), and outside of freight train TJ McDonald at free safety, their secondary doesn't resemble the smothering defensive backfields that terrorized the Pac-10 under Carroll. Overall, Stanford should be able to put up plenty of points against the Trojans.
11-09-2011, 02:43 PM
