11-05-2021, 12:56 PM
OK, so my prediction is Utah blows up Stanford 31-16, and that's with Stanford scoring some late points to make things "closer."
But since Astroturf (?) asked, "does someone have some reason for thinking Stanford could win?"
I think yes, Stanford could win. It wouldn't be a miracle. It wouldn't require Utah to lay an egg.
Watching a little bit of Utah tape, this isn't your typical Utah team. The typical Stanford-Utah nightmare comes down to Stanford -- reliant on its big offensive line and predictable running game -- runs into a ridiculously massive Utah front 7 that absolutely stuns the O-line that has been opening gaping holes all season --and suddenly, they're unable to open any holes, and the system they rely upon isn't working. Well, this isn't your typical Stanford team and this isn't your typical Utah team.
From what I saw, this year's Utah squad was much smaller than their typical ones. I didn't see the typical Stanford kryptonites -- I don't see a massive D line, I don't see massive linebackers, I don't see a mobile quarterback and I don't see a small, dart-like running back or a speedy bruiser running back.
I see a quality squad from top to bottom, well-coached, playing well together, with pretty good balance, and players who play hard.
That's a tough opponent, and it's no wonder they're in the driver's seat to be the Pac 12 south champs.
But it's beatable.
Going into this game, Stanford is going to get a *lot* of players back. It's absolutely miserable trying to run an offense with 1 threat -- Yurocek. But add Michael Wilson, and maybe Humphreys, and it's a totally different. What an offense really needs to keep a defense off balance is *multiple* threats. It doesn't matter how great your tight end is, the defense can just key on him. With enough targets, the offense can be more like the one against Oregon than the one we've seen the last two weeks. If there are multiple receiving dangers, it could also take pressure off the running game, which who knows, maybe could even rush for more then 50 yards.
The biggest question mark is quarterback, and this will probably be disaster and doom. We are sending someone with little to no starting experience at Stanford against one of the Pac 12's premiere defenses. SO yeah, I did say it's most likely Stanford loses by a lot. But you know, maybe the next man up steps up. And I have **long suspected** Isaiah Sanders has a **LOT MORE** up his sleeve than we've let on. I'd bet he has a package of plays the coaches feel comfortable with him running. It's not enough for a season, it's not enough for 2 games, but there may be enough plays to surprise an opponent for one game.
Sometimes, if the backup quarterback is ready to step up, it actually can give you a little bit of an advantage because the other team won't know what's coming and wouldn't have prepped for it as much. It could be a totally different Stanford offense tonight. We might be running the option, we might be running a zone read, we might have a bunch of bootleg options where the quarterback can throw it deep or take off if he sees daylight. I don't know, but Utah doesn't know either.
So, yeah, I'm sayin' there's a chance.
But since Astroturf (?) asked, "does someone have some reason for thinking Stanford could win?"
I think yes, Stanford could win. It wouldn't be a miracle. It wouldn't require Utah to lay an egg.
Watching a little bit of Utah tape, this isn't your typical Utah team. The typical Stanford-Utah nightmare comes down to Stanford -- reliant on its big offensive line and predictable running game -- runs into a ridiculously massive Utah front 7 that absolutely stuns the O-line that has been opening gaping holes all season --and suddenly, they're unable to open any holes, and the system they rely upon isn't working. Well, this isn't your typical Stanford team and this isn't your typical Utah team.
From what I saw, this year's Utah squad was much smaller than their typical ones. I didn't see the typical Stanford kryptonites -- I don't see a massive D line, I don't see massive linebackers, I don't see a mobile quarterback and I don't see a small, dart-like running back or a speedy bruiser running back.
I see a quality squad from top to bottom, well-coached, playing well together, with pretty good balance, and players who play hard.
That's a tough opponent, and it's no wonder they're in the driver's seat to be the Pac 12 south champs.
But it's beatable.
Going into this game, Stanford is going to get a *lot* of players back. It's absolutely miserable trying to run an offense with 1 threat -- Yurocek. But add Michael Wilson, and maybe Humphreys, and it's a totally different. What an offense really needs to keep a defense off balance is *multiple* threats. It doesn't matter how great your tight end is, the defense can just key on him. With enough targets, the offense can be more like the one against Oregon than the one we've seen the last two weeks. If there are multiple receiving dangers, it could also take pressure off the running game, which who knows, maybe could even rush for more then 50 yards.
The biggest question mark is quarterback, and this will probably be disaster and doom. We are sending someone with little to no starting experience at Stanford against one of the Pac 12's premiere defenses. SO yeah, I did say it's most likely Stanford loses by a lot. But you know, maybe the next man up steps up. And I have **long suspected** Isaiah Sanders has a **LOT MORE** up his sleeve than we've let on. I'd bet he has a package of plays the coaches feel comfortable with him running. It's not enough for a season, it's not enough for 2 games, but there may be enough plays to surprise an opponent for one game.
Sometimes, if the backup quarterback is ready to step up, it actually can give you a little bit of an advantage because the other team won't know what's coming and wouldn't have prepped for it as much. It could be a totally different Stanford offense tonight. We might be running the option, we might be running a zone read, we might have a bunch of bootleg options where the quarterback can throw it deep or take off if he sees daylight. I don't know, but Utah doesn't know either.
So, yeah, I'm sayin' there's a chance.