[gailtate]

This kills me. My wife's alma mater.

Stanford's offense at full strength would have made this a 2020 like thriller. Now not so much. Only hope is Dave Wyman and Blake Martinez like clones emerge from Stanford's indifferent group of linebackers and somehow contain DTR and their two exceptional running backs.

Like Gailtate these absences gall me. Injuries I understand. This is a tough sport. If it is because a player refused to get vaxxed and then tainted his teammates by association tell the offender he no longer has a place on the team. Stanford (or any team) cannot carry this type of baggage around that can come out at the worst possible times. Who else will be out on Saturday?

I've bagged on David Shaw as OC and his insistence on wearing the headsets and carrying the Denny's Menu in light of too-numerous-deficiencies-over-the-years to overlook.  However, I have always believed him to have numerous other qualities that make him a good head coach (IF he would only delegate that offense thing).  One of those qualities is being a good role model for young men and helping them develop into responsible adults.  Thus, I would have expected basically 100% vaccination for Stanford players under his charge - but evidently that is not the case (and pretty significantly not the case).  

I realize that it's hard to persuade certain folks of the advantages of getting vaccinated (though I wouldn't expect many of those to be Stanford students, to be blunt).  Thus, the vax rate percent of Stanford football players is a minor demerit reflecting on the coach.  Again, lots of factors here, but I would have expected better leadership on this front.  And btw, I have that same expectation for all Stanford coaches.

Teej, you are gift-wrapping praise for Shaw with surprisingly lethargic and uncharacteristically faint criticism here. I am sick of hearing how our $9MM coach (and his [gag] million-dollar OC mentee) is so abundantly principled. Shouldn't that be a GIVEN? And now, we are presented with evidence that the vaccine may not be so important after all? AYFKM? And, BTW, I do not place this in the "minor demerit" category. But my primary anal burn is the softness of Shaw's team(s). As an informed friend puts it, "players give what is demanded of them."  

[gailtate]

This kills me. My wife's alma mater.

Stanford's offense at full strength would have made this a 2020 like thriller. Now not so much. Only hope is Dave Wyman and Blake Martinez like clones emerge from Stanford's indifferent group of linebackers and somehow contain DTR and their two exceptional running backs.

Like Gailtate these absences gall me. Injuries I understand. This is a tough sport. If it is because a player refused to get vaxxed and then tainted his teammates by association tell the offender he no longer has a place on the team. Stanford (or any team) cannot carry this type of baggage around that can come out at the worst possible times. Who else will be out on Saturday?

I've bagged on David Shaw as OC and his insistence on wearing the headsets and carrying the Denny's Menu in light of too-numerous-deficiencies-over-the-years to overlook.  However, I have always believed him to have numerous other qualities that make him a good head coach (IF he would only delegate that offense thing).  One of those qualities is being a good role model for young men and helping them develop into responsible adults.  Thus, I would have expected basically 100% vaccination for Stanford players under his charge - but evidently that is not the case (and pretty significantly not the case).  

I realize that it's hard to persuade certain folks of the advantages of getting vaccinated (though I wouldn't expect many of those to be Stanford students, to be blunt).  Thus, the vax rate percent of Stanford football players is a minor demerit reflecting on the coach.  Again, lots of factors here, but I would have expected better leadership on this front.  And btw, I have that same expectation for all Stanford coaches.

Teej, you are gift-wrapping praise for Shaw with surprisingly lethargic and uncharacteristically faint criticism here. I am sick of hearing how our $9MM coach (and his [gag] million-dollar OC mentee) is so abundantly principled. Shouldn't that be a GIVEN? And now, we are presented with evidence that the vaccine may not be so important after all? AYFKM? And, BTW, I do not place this in the "minor demerit" category. But my primary anal burn is the softness of Shaw's team(s). As an informed friend puts it, "players give what is demanded of them."