Stanford's defense once again steals the show in Week 3
Stanford is making a case for the best defense in college football, but some loose ends are keeping the Cardinal from cementing that honor.
After three weeks of play, No. 15 Stanford is 2-1 and has outscored its opponents 90-13; No. 9 USC scored all 13 of those points in its 13-10 win at Stanford in Week 2.
Cupcake team or not, shutting out your opponent is a feat. The Cardinal have done it twice so far, including Saturday's 35-0 rout of Army and 45-0 win in the opener against UC Davis.
Against the Aggies, Stanford had four sacks, a healthy habit of its rock-solid defense - the Cardinal led the nation in sacks the past two seasons.
"Defensively, we came out with that attitude," Stanford coach David Shaw told the San Jose Mercury News.
Although Stanford had its streak of 17 consecutive home wins snapped by USC on Sept. 6, the Cardinal have kept another pretty obscure streak intact.
Remarkable streak continues: Stanford defense has now allowed fewer than 30 points in 26 straight games.
— David Lombardi (@LombardiESPN) September 14, 2014
Here's a breakdown of Stanford's numbers stacked up against its opponents this season to date:
| Stanford vs. UC Davis, USC & Army | ||
|---|---|---|
| Stanford | Opponents | |
| Total Yards | 1,289 | 613 |
| Passing Yards | 813 | 198 |
| Rushing Yards | 476 | 415 |
Stanford's defense is also putting in work right from the opening whistle.
Through the first quarter of the season, the Stanford defense is giving up 4.3 points per game.
— David Lombardi (@LombardiESPN) September 13, 2014
But the rushing game on both ends of the ball is something the Cardinal have been struggling with. Army rushed for 198 yards, the most against Stanford this season, following a 341-yard, seven-touchdown effort on the ground in a wild 47-39 victory over Buffalo in its opener.
It was a different story this week, exemplified by Army's final down. Army held the ball for more than 33 minutes behind its triple-option offense, but it was stuffed on fourth-and-1 from the Cardinal 2-yard line to preserve the shutout.
"The last play of the game was a perfect example. It was a good play, but we can't block them," Army coach Jeff Monken told ESPN. "They knocked us back. That happened too often."
Stanford has a high-caliber defense that needs to stop the rush, but it posses an offense also struggling with it. This season only two Stanford players have rushed for 60-plus yards in a game.
"We're not where we want to be," said Stanford QB Kevin Hogan, who threw four touchdowns on 20-for-28 passing and 216 yards Saturday. "It was a good day today executing, but we know we can get better. We stalled there in the first half. We have to find a way to continue those drives and put more points on the board."
Stanford has a bye week before travelling to Washington to take on the undefeated Huskies in what won't be a walk in the park.