Preview 2019: Previewing and looking ahead to the Stanford Cardinal season with what you need to know.
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– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– What Will Happen, Win Total Prediction
– Recruiting Class Analysis | Schedule Analysis
– Stanford Previews 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015
2018 Record: 9-4 overall, 6-3 in Pac-12
Head Coach: David Shaw, 9th year, 82-26
– CFN Preview 2019: All The Team Previews
5. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE STANFORD OFFENSE
– The offense wasn’t the normal Stanford offense. With Bryce Love hurt and the running game going nowhere, the attack relied on the Pac-12’s most efficient passing game. However, the Cardinal finished 11th in the conference in total offense and only averaged 28 points per game. The running backs didn’t get the job done, but the offensive line wasn’t up to its overall talent level. Just five starters are back, but …
– The offense is loaded at quarterback. Everything is in place to be good now, good for the next few years, and in as good a situation as possible depth-wise in case injuries hit.
Senior KJ Costello is about to rise up in a hurry in the NFL scouting world with 6-5, 215-pound size and a nice touch on his deep arm – hitting 65% of his passes last season for 3,540 yards and 29 touchdowns with 11 picks – and he can move a little bit.
6-4 junior Davis Mills is another big, talented passer, 6-4 sophomore Jack West is another big, talented passer, and 6-6, 220-pound Tanner McKee is another big, talented passer who’ll join the fun next year after completing his church mission. Helping the cause …
– Even without JJ Arcega-Whiteside, Kaden Smith and Trenton Irwin, the receivers are fine. There’s a whole lot of young talent ready to bust out and show what they can do, starting with 6-7, 240-pound junior Colby Parkinson, who’s about to become a thing in place of Smith at tight end. He’s the team’s leading returning receiver catching 29 passes for 485 yards and seven scores.
6-2, 200-pound sophomore Michael Wilson has No. 1 target potential coming off a 14 catch first season, and 6-0, 198-pound junior Connor Wedington was a big recruit with the speed to start doing a whole lot more. It’s asking a whole lot for Simi Fehoko to be another Whiteside and replace his 14 touchdown catches, but the 6-4, 210-pound sophomore will get his shot taking over the position.
– One of the biggest national shockers of last year, Bryce Love and the running game didn’t work, averaging just 3.7 yards per game and finishing with 1,403 yards on the season. Love is now a Washington Redskin, and now the spotlight is squarely on Cameron Scarlett to be a bit of a workhorse with the power around the goal line to put up a big statistical season.
He won’t have to do it alone with a promising group around him, but senior Dorian Maddox is the only one with any real experience carrying the ball 23 times last season. There’s the potential to turn around the ground game in a hurry, and now ….
– The offensive line has to be better, and it starts with getting healthier. Foster Sarell and Walker Little could be among the best and most talented tackle combinations in college football, but they need to get and stay healthy. Losing star guard Nate Herbig early to the next level and not having center Jesse Burkett around hurts, but there’s enough talent and experience across the line to play around with the parts, needing 6-7, 287-pound senior Devery Hamilton to move from tackle to guard if everyone is in one piece.
NEXT: What You Need To Know About the Defense, Top Players, Keys to the Season, What Will Happen
4. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE STANFORD DEFENSE
– Just five starters and three of the top seven tacklers are back from a defense that wasn’t anything special. The Cardinal allowed 410 yards per game, but the pass rush was terrific and everything tightened up when it had to – for the most part. There were issues in losses to Utah and Washington State and the win over UCLA, but the D allowed 17 points or fewer seven times. There are issues to deal with, starting with …
– The pass defense has to be a whole lot better. Again, the pressure on the quarterback was there, and the defensive back talent was in place, but the Cardinal allowed 264 yards per game and now needs a few new parts.
Senior Malik Antoine is back at one safety spot after coming up with 53 tackles in an okay year, and 6-1, 189-pound junior corner Paulson Adebo led the team with four interceptions and finished third on the team with 64 stops. The safety situation around Antoine will be the biggest question mark in fall camp, but there’s plenty to like at corner with a deep group of prospects to rotate in, and with 6-2 senior Obi Eboh a decent veteran to push for one spot.
– Linebacker is a bit of an issue, too, but Stanford is always strong at filling the gaps in a hurry. All four starters from the end of last season are done – including top tacklers Bobby Okereke and Sean Barton, and all-around playmaker Joey Alfieri – but senior Jordan Fox is fine at one outside spot coming off a 61-tackle season. Casey Toohill only saw time in seven games, but when he’s right, he’s a disruptive force who’ll make big things happen on the other side. The inside is a bigger concern.
The safety situation will be No. 1A defensive aspect to watch in fall camp, with the linebackers on the inside being in the top spot. It’s going to be an open audition for the two gigs with little to no appreciable experience to count on right away.
– Up front in the front three should join cornerback as the strength of the D early on. All three starters are back from a good-sized group, starting with 293-pound senior Michael Williams on the nose, 271-pound senior Jovan Swann at one end, and 316-pound junior Dalyn Wade-Perry able to work inside or out. There’s enough depth to form a good rotation, and as long as this group is holding up against the run, the outside linebackers will take care of most of the plays behind the line.
NEXT: Top Players, Keys To the Season, What Will Happen
3. TOP STANFORD PLAYERS
Best Stanford Offensive Player
OT Walker Little, Jr.
Everyone’s star NFL prospect has played up to his prep hype – almost. There could be a bit more happening in pass protection, and he and the rest of the line didn’t do much for the running game, but Little is a likely top 20 overall draft pick if he comes out next season. The 6-7, 313-pounder could stand to add a little more to his frame, but he’s got the right size, length, and feet to be a Day One starter on Sundays – just like he was as a true freshman at Stanford.
2. QB KJ Costello, Sr.
3. PK Jet Toner, Sr.
4. TE Colby Parkinson, Jr.
5. OT Foster Sarell, Jr.
Best Stanford Defensive Player
CB Paulson Adebo, Soph.
There’s a whole lot for the next-level types to fall in love with. He’s got 6-1, 189-pound size, good open-field quickness, and the hitting ability to be moved to safety at some point in his NFL career. For now, he’ll be a lockdown corner coming off a 64-tackle season with four picks and a whopping 24 broken up passes. A consistent and solid tackler, he’s great in the open field and will once again own his side of the field. Now the overall pass defense has to be better.
2. DE Jovon Swann, Sr.
3. DT Michael Williams, Sr.
4. S Malik Antoine, Sr.
5. LB Jordan Fox, Sr.
NEXT: Keys to the Season, Prediction & What Will Happen
2. KEYS TO THE SEASON
Biggest Key To The Stanford Offense
More of a running game would be nice. It starts with keeping everyone healthy. The Cardinal had NFL talent in the backfield on on the O line last year, but most of star parts struggled to be 100% at one time and the ground attack fizzled.
The line has the next-level guys at tackle, but Walker Little and Foster Sarrel have to stay in one piece. Cameron Scarlett has the talent to carry the workload, but unlike Bryce Love, he’s not going to have the wiggle to do much when the line isn’t rocking and rolling.
How far did the ground attack fall? After coming up with 2,833 yards and 31 touchdowns and a 5.9 yard per carry average – thanks to the monster season from Love – the production was cut almost in half, finishing with 1,403 yards and just 16 scores. The O was able to get by thanks to the passing game, but the ground attack failed to hit 80 yards five times.
Biggest Key To The Stanford Defense
Oh yeah, the pass defense. For the most part, the play of the secondary turned into the tone-setter for the team last season. The yards mattered, but when the defensive backs weren’t coming up with stops and big plays, there was a problem.
The Cardinal only allowed 14 touchdown passes, but out of the 11 interceptions, none of them came in the four losses. Washington State’s Gardner Minshew, Utah’s Tyler Huntley and Notre Dame’s Ian Book took target practice on the Stanford defensive backs, and Oregon’s Justin Herbert went off for big play after big play before the Ducks’ epic meltdown.
The corners will be fine, but the safeties will need some time and seasoning that they won’t get considering the brutal coast-to-coast slate.
Key Player To A Successful Season
LB Ricky Miezan, Soph.
The Cardinal lost a combined 188 tackles on the inside with Bobby Okereke and Sean Barton done, and they need to be replaced. Simply by the nature of the position, the Cardinal inside linebackers are going to be among the team’s leading tacklers, but can any of them play?
With the inside linebacker situation such a concern, the defense needs players like Jacob Magnum-Farrar and Miezan to quickly grow into instant stars, and the recruiting class has to provide options in the rotation.
The 6-2, 248-pound Miezan has the quickness, size, and range, but he needs the reps and he needs the seasoning after seeing a little time on special teams last season. It’s his fall camp to take over a job that might be his for the next three seasons.
Key Game To The Stanford Season
Oregon, Sept. 21
The date with Washington might just decide the Pac-12 North on October 5th … if the Cardinal can take care of Oregon first.
The Cardinal pulled off a minor miracle – or, the Ducks totally gagged, depending on your interpretation – in a 38-31 win that came right before a run of four losses in five games. It was the third win in a row in the series for Stanford, but this time around, it comes off a brutal run of Northwestern, at USC, and at UCF to kick things off and with a ton of nasty games ahead.
Stanford can’t afford to lose any home games, even if they’re against top ten-caliber teams.
– Stanford Schedule Breakdown & Analysis
2018 Stanford Fun Stats
– Fumbles: Opponents 16 (lost 7) – Stanford 11 (lost 4)
– Sacks: Stanford 36 for 249 yards – Opponents 24 for 147 yards
– Red Zone Scores: Stanford 41-of-46 – Opponents 39-of-49
NEXT: What Will Happen
1. STANFORD WIN TOTAL PREDICTION: WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN
Underestimate Stanford at your own peril, but take one look at the schedule it has to deal with and the analysis is simple.
YEEEEEEEEEESH.
This is another good Cardinal team under David Shaw, and it’ll turn out to be strong enough to beat anyone on the slate, but there are a whole slew of giant holes that need filling.
The inside linebacker jobs will be fine … eventually. That’s a question mark, as is the overall sure-thing health of the offensive line, as is the safety rotation.
The receiving corps will be fine despite losing the top parts, the running backs will eventually be good despite losing Bryce Love, and the offense will keep up in most games with QB KJ Costello good enough to grow into more of an NFL prospect.
Jet Toner is one of the nation’s best kickers, the defense will be fine despite all the personnel losses, and …
Set The Regular Season Win Total At … 8
Again, that schedule is a big, big problem. How bad is it?
Start out against the defending Big Ten West champ, Northwestern, then go to LA to deal with a USC team that really needs the win. Then go to UCF – because that’s a regular old road game against a Group of Five program – and then host a grouchy Oregon team that lost last year’s battle in an epic gag.
There’s your first four weeks.
Oregon State isn’t all that great, but that’s on the road, and then Washington comes to Palo Alto.
So yes, Stanford gets some of the nastiest Pac-12 North games at home, but it doesn’t stop.
UCLA will be stronger. Arizona will be stronger. Going to Colorado and Washington State is scary. Cal’s defense will be a killer again. And if all that wasn’t enough, the regular season ends against Notre Dame.
Even with all of the problems, concerns, and scheduling issues, it’s Stanford under head coach David Shaw. It’ll win at least eight games, it’ll be competitive and tough at home, and it will find ways to pull out enough wins to be in the Pac-12 title chase into November.
– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– Recruiting Class Analysis | Schedule Analysis
