STANFORD — You don’t want a Stanford diploma to see which means the Cardinal soccer program is trending.
After going 82-26 in his first eight seasons, Stanford coach David Shaw is 11-19 during the last three years, together with 4 straight losses by no less than 21 factors to finish the 2021 season.
What appeared like a momentary blip is now trigger for higher concern.
The Cardinal appears to have the suitable items in place for a turnaround, beginning with quarterback Tanner McKee, who was ranked as one of many prime 10 prospects within the 2023 NFL Draft by Professional Soccer Focus. The redshirt sophomore began 9 video games final season and accounted for 19 touchdowns, a program document for a freshman QB.
However the Cardinal will want much more to recapture a few of its previous success. Listed here are 4 keys for Stanford to beat a disastrous finish to final season and outperform the convention media prediction of an eighth place end within the Pac-12.
RUNNING START
Stanford ranked 126th out of 131 FBS groups in dashing yards final season – after which its prime two rushers transferred out. Former lead again Austin Jones will return to Stanford Stadium in Week 2 sporting a USC jersey, whereas speedster Nathaniel Peat went to Missouri.
The brand new rotation can be redshirt sophomore E.J. Smith and junior Casey Filkins. Smith, the son of Emmitt Smith, the NFL’s all-time main rusher, averaged 5.1 yards a carry in restricted motion final season. Filkins excelled in returns final yr however now has an opportunity to point out what he can do with extra time within the backfield.
They are going to run behind a line that returns all 5 starters, together with highly-regarded tackles Walter Rouse and Myles Hinton, guards Barrett Miller and Jake Hornibrook and middle Drake Nugent. Stanford hopes that the continuity on the road will assist the run sport resemble a number of the dominant items that led Stanford to glory up to now.
“There’s a cause why they name it rising pains, as a result of generally it hurts,” Shaw mentioned. “We had some rising pains final yr. However I feel what that taught us actually is what we do nicely, and what we don’t do nicely.”
NEW ALIGNMENT
As unhealthy as Stanford was operating the ball, they have been even worse stopping the run.
The Cardinal allowed 235.7 dashing yards a sport, which was fourth-worst in FBS. This yr’s line of defense would be the least skilled unit on the crew, however a change from a 3-4 to a 4-3 ought to assist fill the run gaps.
“We’re younger and inexperienced on the line of defense, however we’re additionally very athletic and bodily on the line of defense,” Shaw mentioned.
The crew must also profit from the arrival of edge rusher and unanimous four-star recruit David Bailey, who led powerhouse Mater Dei to an undefeated season in 2021. Bailey was an early enrollee, giving him much more time to study the system.
HEALTH CONCERNS
Maybe it shouldn’t have come as shock that Stanford staggered to the end line. The receiving corps was speculated to be its sturdy swimsuit final yr, however the prime three receivers have been by no means wholesome on the identical time. The Cardinal used 4 completely different quarterbacks due to accidents, and the linebackers suffered an uncommon quantity of damaged bones.
Not less than initially, everyone seems to be wholesome. For one, which means McKee may have a full set of targets at his disposal.
The receiving room consists of senior Elijah Higgins (team-high 45 receptions in 2021), senior Michael Wilson (all-Pac-12 honorable point out in 2020) and senior Brycen Tremayne, who scored a TD in every of the primary 5 video games final season earlier than struggling a season-ending knee damage.
CHALLENGING SCHEDULE
After enjoying 12 main convention groups final yr, Stanford will get a break by opening towards Colgate on Saturday. However after that it’s going to be one other grueling schedule.
Apart from internet hosting No. 14 USC in Week 2, the hardest opponents can be on the street (No. 5 Notre Dame, No. 7 Utah, No. 11 Oregon) – all throughout a stretch of six street video games in 9 weeks.
The Cardinal has a bye within the third week, which suggests 10 straight video games to shut the season, ending with No. 25 BYU on Thanksgiving Saturday.
The Cardinal additionally received unfortunate with its crossover opponents. The 2 convention groups Stanford gained’t face this yr are Arizona and Colorado, the underside two groups within the Pac-12 preseason media ballot.
If the Cardinal needs to make a bowl sport this yr, it might want to pull off a number of upsets.