For most of its existence, the Stanford football program has been primarily a mediocre one for College Football odds fans. However, for the past several years, it has moved into more of a power role in the Pac-12. This transition became official when Andrew Luck led the Cardinal to an upset of then-#8 Oregon by throwing for 251 yards and two scores in a 51-42 win.
Our Expert NCAA Football Odds Report: Stanford Looks to Return to Running the Football
12 days. #GoStanford pic.twitter.com/UGIMM4Ar2R
— Stanford Athletics (@GoStanford) August 25, 2015
As impressive as Luck was that day, though, it was Toby Gerhart who was the real story. He set a Stanford record that day by running for 223 yards. As terrific as Luck would turn out to be, Gerhart’s day established the Cardinal’s offense as one that is predicated on the run. Stanford would beat #9 USC the next week, and Stanford would rush for 325 yards as a team. While the team would fall the next week, the definition of Stanford football was now clear.
The last time Stanford knocked off Oregon came in 2013, when Tyler Gaffney led the Cardinal to a combined rushing day of 274 yards. The ability of Stanford to keep the ball on the ground kept the Oregon offense off the field, keeping them from mounting a fourth quarter comeback. At the time, Stanford was in national championship contention after beating the Ducks, although their loss to USC the next week meant they would only have a Pac-12 championship to celebrate that year.