The 3-3-5 defense is largely predicated on the safeties creating pressure and bringing people down when they get past the first level of the defense, but the safeties had a reaaaaally tough time with UCLA, and Stanford might even be more of a challenge with its large offensive line and its talented running backs. He’s all about making the No. 18 Cardinal one of the best rushing teams in the Pac-12.
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Stanford concludes its road trip Sunday at 11 a.m. (PT) when it takes on No. 17 Arizona.
Arizona suffered a 42-24 loss to the UCLA Bruins last week.
McCaffrey (111.2) ranks just below Randall.
Stanford coach David Shaw’s plan of running back by committee seems to be working. All more reason for Hogan and the Cardinal offense to get the ball over the goal line whenever possible and not settle for field goals. “I don’t think the guy wrapped up very well”. Seconds later, Remound Wright rumbled in to give Stanford a 20-3 lead. “And if they are not they are not who I think they are. We have to play our best football from here on out”.
The resurgence continued Saturday night with a 55-17 victory over Arizona in which the Cardinal gained 570 total yards, scored on its first eight possessions and didn’t punt until early in the fourth quarter.
Ever since Andrew Luck went to the National Football League following the 2011 season, consistency – or a lack thereof – had been a vexing problem for the Stanford offense. “Never really full speed, so I was just going out there trying to do what I could do to kick out that corner and let Christian do his thing”. Will Parks leads the Wildcats with 26 tackles, Haden Gregory has two pass deflections and Tellas Jones has a forced fumble.
Arizona quarterback Jerrard Randall, left, evades a tackle from… He was limited in practice during the week.
Sanders has made the most of his opportunities in Stanford’s backfield this fall. Arizona will be without linebacker Scooby Wright, the 2014 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year, due to an ankle injury. Tech’s DeAndre Washington is second in the Big 12 at 118.8 yards rushing per game, while Jakeem Grant’s 103.2 yards tops three Red Raiders among the league’s top 10 in that category. If they can get a couple of wins under their belt, the confidence will surely come back towards the latter stages of the season.
It was a rough September for the Hornets, but they look to get back on track this weekend with a home game against Northern Colorado.
“It’s the Wild West every week, ” Shaw said.
USC? That’s the one piece of evidence thus far that points to Stanford having an elite offense. The Cardinal TEs only caught one pass (Taboada) for 13 yards, but their biggest form of production was sealing the outside for the rush attack.
– Stanford has scored at least 37 points in each of its past four games against Arizona.
Nick Wilson, who entered the game as the conference’s leading rusher, was held to 46 yards, though he had a touchdown. Hogan also moved into fifth place on Stanford’s career passing yardage list.
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GOING FOR A MILESTONE: Rodriguez needs one win to reach 150 for his career and 30 at Arizona.
