Blog debate: Stanford vs. Washington

Washington visits Stanford on Saturday in matchup of ranked Pac-12 teams, but what the Huskies and Cardinal most notably share -- other than quarterbacks putting up big numbers -- is a lack of quality wins.

One team will get one this weekend.

So seeing that the Pac-12 and Stanford blogs will be crossing paths on Saturday, it seems like a great time to visit and chat about this Pac-12 North Division matchup.

Kevin, give me the lay of the land at Stanford. What are the folks on the Farm happy with so far during six blowout wins? And is there anything that isn’t working well?

Kevin Gemmell: I think that any conversation regarding Stanford and their happiness has to start with quarterback Andrew Luck. His evolution in the pro-style/West Coast offense has been fun to watch. He really has a handle on it. The offensive line is progressing, the tight ends are scary good and Stepfan Taylor is running the ball hard and efficiently. Defensively, you can't ask for much more. The Cardinal have held their last 12 opponents under 20 points.

Now, the not so good. Notice I didn't mention the wide receivers when giving the offensive fly-over? I will say that Griff Whalen has stepped up his game significantly in the past two weeks. But Chris Owusu isn't having the season head coach David Shaw anticipated. And with Owusu's recent concussion, we're not sure how much of a contributor he'll be for the next couple of weeks. Outside of those two, none of the other wide receivers have stepped up. Luck leans heavily on his three tight ends and his backs. But I guess when you have three guys like Coby Fleener, Zach Ertz and Levine Toilolo, you can get by without a big-time wide receiver.

Stanford's pass rush is ridiculous -- averaging almost four sacks per game. Tell me about the Washington offense. Are they going to be able to keep Keith Price upright?

[+] Enlarge Steven Bisig/US PresswireBehind the play of quarterback Keith Price, Washington is averaging 37 points per game.Ted Miller: The midseason story with the Washington offense has been the meteoric maturation of Price, whom you might notice is nipping on Luck’s heels as the conference’s most efficient quarterbacks. Oh, and Price has more touchdown passes -- 21 to 18 -- so pffffft!

Price also has a good crew of receivers and an up-and-coming star at tight end in Austin Seferian-Jenkins, not to mention an A-list running back in Chris Polk, who makes his living after contact. The Huskies are averaging 37 points per game and have scored more than 30 points in each game this season. There’s good pass-run balance with an average of 246 yards passing and 174 yards rushing.

In fact, you might say that the Huskies want to play like Stanford: balanced and physical.

Ah, but that matchup up front is key. The Huskies' offensive line has been solid this year but it’s certainly not dominant. It yields two sacks per game, which is OK but not great. And the Cardinal will be coming hard for Price. In fact, the Huskies badly lost the battle up front in last year’s 41-0 defeat in Husky Stadium. The question is how much difference can one year make?

You know this Stanford defense -- you've noted the pass rush -- what should the Huskies do to attack it? And while we’re getting deep, is there any way to contain Luck and his tight ends?

Kevin Gemmell: If there is one thing Stanford coach David Shaw knows -- it's quarterbacks. He also knows how to exploit their weaknesses. This is a program that doesn't gauge its pass rush success by how many sacks it gets, but rather how many times pass-rushers put a hit on the quarterback -- regardless of the play's outcome. The Cardinal believe if they are getting a body on the quarterback, that will eventually wear him down over the course of the game. So to answer your question of what the Huskies need to do: play fast.

Price can't afford to sit back in the pocket too long because the Cardinal front will collapse it. They set edges very well -- almost like they are creating their own pocket for the defense -- and then Chase Thomas & Co. mop up.

[+] Enlarge Steve Conner/Icon SMIZach Ertz and his fellow Stanford tight ends have given opposing defenses fits this season.Now, containing the tight ends. Sure, you can probably contain one of them. But what happens when they put all three on the field at the same time? And then motion fullback Ryan Hewitt (a former tight end) out of the backfield and into the slot. Now you've got four receivers taller than 6-foot-5 who are just as fast a wide receivers and a lot stronger. I've said this before, Stanford is running some of the most innovative offensive schemes I've ever seen in football with those tight ends.

Let's get down to it, Ted. We're both going to be in Palo Alto for this one. How do you see this game playing out?

Ted Miller: It’s hard to get past 41-0, the butt-kicking delivered last year by the Cardinal in Seattle. Yet I think this is a much better Huskies team. And I’m not sure that Stanford is as good as last year.

That said, Stanford at home with Andrew Luck -- that’s just too difficult to pick against, particularly with Stanford's clear defensive superiority. I think this game plays out like a lot of Stanford games this year: close for a half, then Luck and the Cardinal pump on the gas. So I’m saying 42-24, Stanford.

What about you?

Kevin Gemmell: As it is in most Stanford games, the pass rush is going to be the key. One team can get to the quarterback, the other one probably won't. Stanford leads the nation in sacks allowed (two) while having one of the best pass rushes in the country. That's going to make the difference. Plus it's homecoming and the official word is Stanford Stadium was sold out by Tuesday morning and rumor is the rest of the season has been sold out. Folks in Palo Alto are excited. I don't see the Cardinal letting the down.

Stanford wins 42-17.

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Stanford, WSU about to kickoff

PULLMAN, Wash. -- After some splotchy weather the first half of the day, the sun finally broke through (at least for a little while) over the Pacific Northwest.

Gray clouds are starting to move back in though as the teams prepare for kickoff. And it looks like the Cougars' mood matches the weather. They came out in their all-gray uniforms after warming up in their Crimson gear. And every single player was carrying an individual Washington State flag. It looked like the League of Nations.

Despite there being plenty of seats still to be filled, the student section is packed and they were giving quarterback Andrew Luck the business during his warmups (most of which can't be repeated in this blog, but use your imagination). Stanford gets the ball first.

As usual, plenty of scouts in the press box to look at No. 12.

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Stanford prepping for pistol

PALO ALTO, Calif. -- So far this season, each week has provided the Stanford Cardinal with a new and unique test. Tomorrow’s matchup against UCLA is no different. [+] Enlarge Jim Z. Rider/US PresswireUCLA Bruins tailback Derrick Coleman presents a hefty challenge for the Stanford defense this week.Tomorrow, it will be the pistol offense.

“We’ve watched what they’ve done the past few weeks,” said Stanford linebacker Max Bergen. “They’ve really shown they can run the ball with a lot of big people in the box.”

The advantage of the pistol is that with the quarterback lined up four yards behind center, rather than the usual seven-yard shotgun (ergo, pistol), he’s still able to read the defense, but linebackers have less time to react.

“You have to be locked in and communicate on defense,” said Stanford coach David Shaw. “Every defense you run, you have to account for the dive, the quarterback pull and you have to account for there being an extra blocker that might come across, whether it’s the receiver or running back or tight end. You have to be extremely well coordinated … everything we run has to be sound against what they do.”

UCLA, which averages 214 rushing yards per game, has a pair of running back options they can throw at Stanford. Johnathan Franklin is the smaller, speedier back. Derrick Coleman, at 240 pounds, is a bowling ball. Franklin left UCLA’s game against Oregon State last week with a bruised hip, but said he probably could have returned. That opened the door for Coleman to rush for 100 yards on 20 carries.

“He’s thick, and he’ll drag tacklers,” Shaw said. “... They understand the pistol offense. The running backs in the pistol offense -- those backs have to be decisive and they have to go toward the line of scrimmage full speed. And the big ones can get a full head of steam, and the quicker ones, they get to the line of scrimmage so quick.

“…While you’re still in decision-mode of who has the ball, they’ve got a 4-yard gain. It can be an exciting form of offense, and they’ve got good players that fit it.”

And in case you haven’t heard, Stanford has a pretty good run defense. Statistically speaking, the best run defense in the country, allowing just 36 yards per game. They are fast and physical. But UCLA wants to go muscle-for-muscle with them.

“You understand as you do in prize fighting that you’re going in against somebody that likes to punch, likes to slug,” said UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel. “Our defense has to understand that and our offense has to understand that. It’s a key piece to this game, the physical nature that they like to play with, and frankly it’s been kind of their calling card.”

The pistol has grown in popularity over the past half decade, and strands of the formation have trickled across the college football landscape, and even into the NFL. Shaw said they have a few pistol packages in the playbook if they need to mix things up.

“There is a bit more you need to get ready for,” Bergen said. “But by the end of the week, we’re all set with what our assignments are and what our jobs are … We’re looking forward to having an offense like this really challenge our run defense.”

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No, it's not a bye week for No. 5 Stanford

The schedule says bye week. But don't let that confuse you. This is not a bye week.

"It's Improvement Week," said tight end Zach Ertz. "We're using this time to improve."

And to drive home that point, the Cardinal had a visitor last week to practice, Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice.

[+] Enlarge Matt Kartozian/US PRESSWIRE"I'm a typical coach," David Shaw said. "We only concentrate on the things we have to get better at. We're not good at patting ourselves on the back.""He gave us some great, wise words," said head coach David Shaw. "He never took a play off and he never took a day off because he knew if he did, someone was going to beat him. And it's that mentality of if we back off and say 'we're doing this well and this well' and don't push ourselves to be better, somebody is going to come in here and beat us."

Translation: Don't even think about using this time to catch your breath. The Cardinal return to action Oct. 1 when they host UCLA.

"We're picking things from the first three games that we need to work on in all three phases," Shaw said. "We're not really jumping on UCLA just yet. We're really concentrating on us and what we need to work on. We're having freshman scrimmages and non-travel scrimmages for the guys that aren't playing right now to continue to train them and get them ready to play at some point. We're taking some of the hits off the other guys that played a lot of football in the first three games.

"But at the same time, it's too early in the season for us to not go hard. So we're going to have physical practices and then end those physical practices with a young-guy scrimmage."

Shaw's first thoughts about the early bye week were that he didn't like it. But with school starting next week and this week filled with orientation meetings, the players can practice in the morning and then meet all of their school-oriented requirements in the afternoons.

Shaw said despite the team's 3-0 record and No. 5 ranking nationally, he's more focused on what the Cardinal have done wrong during the three-game stretch than what they have done right.

"I'm a typical coach," he said. "We only concentrate on the things we have to get better at. We're not good at patting ourselves on the back because the things you don't do well are the things that teams use against you. That's what we have to spend this week on, tightening up things in all three phases."

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