Stanford Cardinal
Pac-12
With a tough defense and a solid ground game, Stanford once again had a successful season. In a tough Pac-12, the Cardinal ended up with wins against Arizona State, Washington, UCLA, Oregon State, Oregon and Notre Dame. All of those teams were ranked at the time Stanford beat them. Unfortunately, a couple of close road losses ruined Stanford’s national title dreams.
2013 Record: 11-2, 7-2
Coach: David Shaw
Coach Bowl Record: 1-1
Big Wins: 9/21 Arizona State (42-28), 11/7 Oregon (26-20)
Bad Losses: 10/12 at Utah (21-27), 11/16 at USC (17-20)
Strengths:
Linebackers Shayne Skov, A.J. Tarpley and Trent Murphy are a huge reason why this is one of the best rush defenses in the country. Skov led the squad with 100 tackles and added 4.5 sacks and 10.0 tackles-for-loss. But it is Murphy who is the team’s best pass rushing threat. He totaled an impressive 14.0 sacks and 21.5 tackles-for-loss. All the linebackers have amazing versatility and are comfortable dropping back into coverage. With linemen like Josh Mauro and Ben Gardner pushing the offensive line back, running against Stanford is simply not going to happen. And the opposition will have just as much trouble stopping the ground game as they will have establishing their own. Tyler Gaffney, a 6-1, 226 pound senior, rushed for 1,618 yards and 20 touchdowns on the year. He is a bruiser and a workhorse who can keep grinding away and wear down the opposing defense.
Weaknesses:
The pass defense has given up over 250 yards per game. However, the Cardinal have beaten some of the most potent passing attacks in the nation. This is a team that held Oregon State to 12 points and Oregon to 20. They can handle the passing game despite the numbers. However, this is not a team that has performed well when they are forced to throw the ball. Quarterback Kevin Hogan has done a decent enough job avoiding turnovers and handing the ball off to Gaffney. He even has an explosive receiver in Ty Montgomery to work with, but asking Hogan to win games instead of just not losing them is asking too much.
Statistical Leaders:
Rushing: Tyler Gaffney, RB, 1,618 yards
Passing: Kevin Hogan, QB, 2,487 yards
Receiving: Ty Montgomery, WR, 937 yards
Tackles: Shayne Skov, LB, 100
Sacks: Trent Murphy, LB, 14.0
Interceptions: Jordan Richards, S, 3
2013 Team Stats:
Rushing Offense: 208.5 (26, 4)
Passing Offense: 195.9 (94, 11)
Total Offense: 404.4 (68, 9)
Scoring Offense: 32.8 (44, 6)
Rushing Defense: 87.3 (3, 1)
Pass Defense: 254.0 (96, 8)
Total Defense: 341.3 (15, 1)
Scoring Defense: 19.0 (13, 1)
Turnover Margin: 0.0 (63, 8)
Sacks: 2.92 (11, 4)
Sacks Allowed: 0.92 (11, 1)
Recent Bowl Appearances:
2012 Rose Bowl Wisconsin (20-14)
2011 Fiesta Bowl Oklahoma State (38-41)
2010 Orange Bowl Virginia Tech (40-12)
2009 Sun Bowl Oklahoma (27-31)
2001 Seattle Bowl Georgia Tech (14-24
1999 Rose Bowl Wisconsin (9-17)
*all team stats through 11/30
