Stanford Cardinal:
I’m fond of saying “this season isn’t about wins and losses” for teams that are rebuilding or in transition. That is true of Stanford’s 2024 campaign. Head coach Troy Taylor is trying to build the Cardinal program back up and it takes time. Recruiting standards are high in Palo Alto and the talent pipeline has been running dry for a while.
But, he’s in great shape going forward, as he brought in an awesome recruiting class by Stanford standards. 247 Sports graded Stanford’s 2024 class as the 31st in the nation and Rivals had the Trees 27th. The best way to accelerate a rebuild is by infusing highly-rated talent and Taylor has done that.
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Offense
This running game was awful last season. The Cardinal averaged just 3.4 yards per carry and QB Ashton Daniels was the second-leading rusher with 296 yards. The passing game wasn’t much better, as the team averaged just 5.03 yards per play to rank 110th. Daniels was clearly the best option and posted an 11/8 TD/INT ratio with a 58.8% completion rate, but he has a better offensive line this year and returns a 1,000-yard receiver in Elic Ayomanor.
The problem is that Stanford’s transfer portal ranking was 128th per 247, so a lot of young kids will either have to make an immediate impact or bide their time while the more experienced players get reps. That leaves the Stanford offense with a very low ceiling again for this season, unless they are willing to be more creative.
Defense
If you thought the offensive numbers were bad, avert your eyes from the defensive numbers. Stanford was 126th in yards per play allowed with 6.57 and only mustered 11 takeaways. It is Year 2 for the entire coaching staff, including DC Bobby April, so there is hope for improvement, especially in terms of generating negative plays. A lot of the commits with a chance to play right away are on defense.
The chief concern is that the Cardinal got picked apart by both the run, ranking 100th in yards per carry allowed, and the pass. They allowed the most passing yards per game with 298, nearly 10 more than any other defense. The conference change may help, as the ACC isn’t as potent or explosive as last year’s Pac-12 was, but the Trees need more help than that.
Outlook
The outlook is bleak for 2024. Taylor, who has had offensive success at every stop of his career, may ultimately turn things around, but probably not this season. I have Stanford with 3.82 wins, but they’re only favored three times in my Power Ratings and one is as a half-point favorite (Wake Forest). If the talent shines early, I’ll adjust, but I’m skeptical for now.
Pick: Under 3.5 Wins
