"Just For Kicks" w/ Aaron Mills
The
Ducks are up next and there could be a lot more special teams action
today that there was last week. After beating up Notre Dame to go 4-0, the
Cardinal gets its true first national-caliber test.
Last Saturday
was so matter-of-fact, such a methodical, dominating performance against the
most storied program in college football history. Wait, our most
"recent" win over Notre Dame on the road had been back when I
was suiting up for the Cardinal & White back in 1992? That
is one long dry spell against the irritating Irish!
Happily, we can say now that our last win on the road against
Notre Dame occurred this past Saturday! I was happy to see the
Cardinal bring back a big “W” from South Bend and enjoyed immensely
our leap up in the polls by seven spots from #16 to #9. Also, we can now
two wins in a row against the Golden Domers, which won't hurt Stanford's
reputation or recruiting efforts. If we can somehow get past perennial
powerhouses Oregon and USC in the next two weeks, it will do wonders for
our rising program.
Before I get to the sensational special teams effort against the
Irish, I must say that I'm very proud of the way we closed out the game on
Saturday and methodically put the game out of reach. It's a testament to the
solid character of this bunch. I'm sure if you size up the sheer number of Notre
Dame fans to Stanford fans around the country, we would fall far short (not in
spirit of course). But we didn't fall short in the points
production category, carving out a convincing 37-14 win that
has contributed to a tremendous 4-0 start to the 2010 campaign. With a
solid showing against the Ducks and Trojans, this quickly could become
quite the magical season!
And special congratulations are in order for senior
fullback/linebacker Owen Marecic for his record-setting sequence in the
fourth quarter, scoring two touchdowns in 13 seconds on either side of the
ball. Last season, the limelight was consistently on Toby Gerhart, and
now Owen's star is shining brightly this year. Soak it up and keep it
up!
While it may make things challenging for one tasked with
commenting on the punting game, I am quite happy to be deprived of material with
which to work. Punter Daniel Zychlinski (#36), about whom I am determined to
write about more extensively one of these days, had but one
attempt this week...again! One punt, for 37 yards, with no return, downed
by his teammates inside the five... what else can you ask for from the guy? Job
well done! At this pace, Daniel could well end up with less
than 40 attempts in 2010. Been there, done that, only in 1994 when we were
3-7-1, I had 44 punt attempts.
In the early 90s, we were frequently
engaged in high-scoring offensive shootouts a la pass-happy Dan Marino back
in his Miami Dolphins days, so my punting duties at the time were extremely
limited. Punting is a weird science that depends greatly on the playing style of
your particular team. In an example of the other extreme, Paul Stonehouse in
1992 had a busy year punting 81 times for our most recent 10-win
team. During the 1992 season, it
seemed at times that we wanted to have our defense on the
field! Paul punted for a
then-record 3,427 yards that year! Stanford had never even punted for 3,000
in a season before that. In 2003, we punted for a total 3,687
yards, but to be honest with you, we were punting because sadly, it was
our most effective play!
"Go figure" with the analysis of punt attempts...All I know
is that I like what I'm seeing this year. Be proud though, "Z", you are the
third punter in an impressive line of strong-legged Floridians to take off
for Stanford since 1990. We bring the "juice" to the kicking game! Pun
intended.
Place-kicker Nate Whitaker (#39) had a fantastic,
flawless performance, especially given the fact that he was playing against
his former Notre Dame teammates in South Bend. Five field goals in a
game tied my own former teammate, John Hopkins, who had made five of six in
a remarkable "revenge" victory over Cal back in 1990. Coach Harbaugh made special notice that all of
Nate’s kicks were "spot on" and "down the middle", so it is clear that he has
his focus back. Who knows, Nate may have gotten word that I noticed and
mentioned last week that he was pushing most of his kicks last week against Wake Forest and needed to work on his follow-through and maintain the consistency of
his "swing". But then again, he's a Stanford student with solid special teams
coaching, and he probably self-corrected his issues J.
Missing a couple of 20-yard PAT attempts has
little to do with leg strength, it requires accuracy that will accompany
consistent ball-striking and improved focus on follow-through. It is
an art learned through repetition and practiced focus. Syracuse holds the
consecutive extra point conversion record, which stands at 262,
accomplished between 1978 to 1989 by a group of seven different
Orangemen kickers. Only last week, Missouri's Grant Ressel finally
missed a try, leaving the Tigers 10 short of the equaling that
21-year-old NCAA record.
Stanford's effort on kickoff coverage against the
Irish can not be ignored, as it was truly superb. On the occasions that a
returner on Notre Dame's side decided that a two-yard deep kick was returnable,
they got stuffed at the 15-yard-line. Sometimes returners act impulsively
thinking they can make that big play on a return, but when Notre Dame took the
ball out of the end zone, Stanford did a fantastic job of getting down the field
and making the play. Coach Harbaugh called attention to the special teams
overall and I completely agree that the Cardinal took care of
business.
In the wake of USC's discrepancies and the Los Angeles media
that supports them, our conference still has much respect and I hope that we can
manage to win the Oregon game in front of a more wide-awake East Coast
audience (8:00 pm EST on ABC) and give some nation-wide credibility back to
a rejuvenated Stanford team. Oregon's well-publicized success, combined with
our recent rise should attract good attention in the west with
the game on at 5:00 pm on ABC. Take notice, the winner should have
some meaningful momentum and added confidence. #9 Stanford versus #4
Oregon, fantastic! I know that we are not going to be afraid to put our chin
straps on and go back to work on Saturday afternoon.
We are,
Stan-ford!