No. 23 Stanford: Cardinal are a legit Pac-12 title contender
Dr. Saturday’s will unveil its preseason Top 25 team-by-team during the next 25 days. This list is based on returning starters, schedule and prospects. However, we all know that once the games begin, things can change very quickly. Still, we thought we’d give our best guess heading into the 2015 season.
No. 23 Stanford
2014 record: 8-5, 5-4 in Pac-12
Returning starters: 9 Offense; 5 Defense
2015 Outlook: You can make a legitimate case that Stanford is the favorite in the Pac-12 North.
The Cardinal have a favorable schedule in the incredibly tough Pac-12 in 2015. While Stanford visits USC on September 19, it’s the only trip the Cardinal has to make to a team that has realistic Pac-12 title game aspirations. Arizona, UCLA and Oregon all come to Stanford, while the Cardinal also host Notre Dame to end the season. Stanford’s other conference road games? At Oregon State, at Washington State and at Colorado. All are eminently winnable.
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The game against Oregon may become the de facto Pac-12 North title game. The Cardinal have beaten Oregon two of the last three times the Ducks have come to Palo Alto. And while Oregon enters 2015 with a question at quarterback, there are none at Stanford.
Kevin Hogan returns for his senior year, one of nine starters on the offensive side of the ball coming back for 2015. No one is mistaking Hogan for former Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck, but Hogan should be one of the better quarterbacks in college football. In 2014, he threw for 2,792 yards, 19 touchdowns and eight interceptions while completing almost 66 percent of his passes. Don’t be surprised if he throws for over 3,000 yards and over 25 touchdowns.
But while Stanford’s offense is loaded, the defense will be asking for many backups in 2014 to step up. Though Coach David Shaw said he appreciated any skepticism about his defense entering the season. The Cardinal have given up fewer than 20 points per game in four of the past five seasons and should boast a strong linebacking corps once again with Kevin Anderson and Blake Martinez.
“I say thank you. I say thank you,” Shaw said. “It’s great. I like when people doubt us as opposed to getting pats on the back. I have no problem with that at all because I’m one of those guys that believes, yes, we should have to prove ourselves every year. Even if guys are coming back and we have everybody coming back, it doesn’t mean anything. It’s all about what you do here going out now. We’ve recruited extremely well. I love our line backing core, even though not everybody knows who they are … I think [LB] Peter Kalambayi is another name that’s going to explode on the scene. Kevin Anderson played well last year, he’ll play better this year. Blake Martinez is going to play as well as any linebacker in the country.”
Player to watch: Devon Cajuste, WR
With the departure of Ty Montgomery to the NFL, Cajuste is Hogan’s top returning receiver. Cajuste had 34 catches for 557 yards and six touchdowns in 2014 and the 6-4, 230 pounder will be counted on as Stanford’s main red zone target.
His production will depend on his health, which could be an issue early in the season. Cajuste has what Shaw termed a “high ankle” injury and has been working his way back. According to Shaw, he avoided surgery for the injury and is ahead of schedule in his rehab to be ready “at some point” in Stanford’s fall camp. Given how quirky ankle injuries can be, especially for receivers, don’t be surprised if Stanford lightens Cajuste’s workload at the beginning of the season.
Breakout player: Chris McCaffrey, RB
Heading into 2014, Stanford had six straight seasons with a running back over 1,000 yards rushing. The streak didn’t reach seven as Remound Wright was the team’s leading rusher with 601 yards.
Wright’s still around for 2015 and will see his share of carries, but the bulk of the workload in the backfield is expected to go to sophomore McCaffrey, the son of former NFL wide receiver Ed McCaffrey.
McCaffrey ran for 300 yards in 2014 but averaged over seven yards a carry. Shaw spoke highly of him at Pac-12 media days, noting his improvements in pass protection.
“So he’s a guy that can line up 7 yards behind the quarterback, and run the ball between the tackles and pound people, yes, he can do that,” Shaw said of the 6-0, 200 pound McCaffrey. “But he can do all the things you saw him do last year, run outside, run inside, be part of the gun run game. Return punts and kickoffs and catch the ball in the back field or catch the ball as a receiver. There is not a lot limiting what he can do.”
Given that McCaffrey will share time with Wright and Barry Sanders Jr. (yes, the son of that Barry Sanders), it’s entirely possible that Stanford could go a second straight season without a 1,000 yard rusher. But McCaffrey’s versatility should make him one of the most important players for Stanford’s conference title chances.
Miss one of our Top 25? No. 24 Boise State, No. 25 Wisconsin.
For more Stanford news, visit CardinalSportsReport.com.
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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
