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Fans of Stanford have seen this before. The Cardinal start out slow, then go on a run to compete for the Pac-12 championship. They can only hope it happens again this season.
Coming off a disappointing 17-14 loss to Notre Dame in wet and cold South Bend, Ind. last week, the Cardinal (3-2, 1-1) will look to once again go on a winning streak to get to the Pac-12 championship. They will have to begin the run Friday night vs. pass heavy Washington State and record-breaking quarterback Connor Halliday.
Halliday threw for an NCAA-record 734 yards in Washington State’s 60-59 loss to California on Saturday and completed 49-of-70 passes with six touchdowns, but the Cardinal are 8-0 after losses with David Shaw at coach, and have not lost two games in a row since 2009. They’re also the only two-loss team in the AP poll, losing close defensive battles to USC and the Irish.
It will be an interesting matchup, with Stanford only allowing 8.7 points per game, against Mike Leach‘s pass-heavy offense that we saw for years while he was at Texas Tech. Halliday has one game this season throwing less then 400 yards, and Stanford has shutout UC Davis and Army, and the most points they have allowed is 17, losing against Notre Dame.
The Cougars (2-4, 1-1) offense has been exciting this year and don’t be surprised if they score 30-40 points on Stanford’s stubborn defense, but this game means more for the Cardinal. It’s a must-win to keep them in the hunt for a Pac-12 title, and although this would be a huge upset for the Cougars, the Stanford defense should step up in the second half and hold on for the victory at home.
Prediction: No. 25 Stanford 45, Washington State 31
When: Friday Oct. 10 at 9 p.m. ET
Where: Stanford Stadium, Palo Alto, Calif.
TV: ESPN
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