If it weren’t for so many late Stanford kickoffs, when a huge chunk of the 800+ Heisman voters are snoozing on the East Coast, McCaffrey would be the runaway favorite.
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Christian McCaffrey has broken the record of a player he grew up idolizing.
Helton said he didn’t wait until after the bowl game to begin reshaping Sarkisian’s former staff because “I wanted to give them the best opportunity to move forward with their career”. “You get the opportunity to be the coach at USC one time and I’m going to bring in the coaches that I feel can help us toward a championship”. That’s a guy I have posters on my wall growing up. “Even to be mentioned in the same category is definitely an honor”.
If carrying his team to a Pac-12 title wasn’t enough of a Heisman resume builder, McCaffrey went a step further, breaking Barry Sanders’ NCAA record for single-season all-purpose yards set in 1988. McCaffrey finished with 207 rushing yards, 105 receiving, and 149 return yards with three touchdowns (pass, rush, receiving). Christian McCaffrey did it all in a record-setting performance that should send him to NY for the Heisman Trophy ceremony and Stanford to a third Rose Bowl in four years.
The Cardinal will have to settle for a trip to Pasadena and the Rose Bowl. Inside the Trojans red zone, Hogan handed the ball off to Barry Sanders Jr., McCaffrey came across on an end around, took the pitch from Sanders and instead of running straight into a USC linebacker, he tossed it to a wide open Hogan for an 11-yard touchdown.
“The second half, we came out and played great”, Kessler said.
USC took the lead in the third quarter, but could not hang on.
Helton remained the Trojans’ play-caller this year upon being named head coach, but said he will not call plays next season. “We’re not there now, but it’s the only thing that makes sense”.
Stanford took a 3-0 lead on Conrad Ukropina’s 30-yard field goal, which ended a 65-play drive.
Knowing his team is unlikely to make the four-team national playoff, Shaw said he expects the playoff field to expand to eight teams at some point. That setup a 7-yard touchdown by Hogan giving the Cardinals back the lead 20-16.
“They knew all they had to do was do their job”, Helton said of the Trojans’ attitude at the break. Oh, and he also threw an 11-yard touchdown pass – to quarterback Kevin Hogan – to go with his scores on the ground and through the air.
When Stanford faces USC in the Pac-12 Conference championship game Saturday in Santa Clara, Calif., it could be excused if it is caught doing a little scoreboard-watching.
Stanford needed more than victory and, for McCaffrey, even unparalleled brilliance might not have sealed the deal. Senior linebacker Blake Martinez — the conference’s leading tackler — sacked quarterback Cody Kessler and forced a fumble that was picked up by lineman Solomon Thomas.
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“I think I was just able to – I was put in a bunch of situations to be successful, I think”, McCaffrey said. Hogan found McCaffrey in an absurdly solitary place, right in the heart of USC’s defense, and he streaked 67 yards.
