We continue our ambitious offseason series, counting down the top
40 moments of the Harbaugh/Shaw era.
No matter how you slice it, Stanford football
has arrived. Though we’ve since assumed all the trappings of a
football powerhouse – the three straight runner-up finishes in
Heisman voting, the two straight BCS bowl berths and top-10
finishes, the top-ten 2012 recruiting class, or the eminent
graduation of top pro prospect of the last decade – it wasn’t
that long ago that Stanford football was an afterthought.
On December 19, 2006, new athletic director Bob Bowlsby hired Jim Harbaugh, a former star quarterback, but
an unproven coach who had never worked at the FBS level. The
rest, as they say, was history.
We are pleased present Stanford football’s 40 most memorable
moments, trends, games and personalities from the magical
five-plus years that followed that December 2006 announcement.
13. Streaking
Stanford wins 10 straight games by 25+ points; longest winning streak in FBS (17)
Two of the most devastating defeats in Stanford football history
bookended the program's most impressive rampage ever. After the
52-31 loss to Oregon in 2010 and before the Ducks' 53-30 rematch
beatdown in 2011, the Cardinal ripped off 17 straight wins. Theirs
was the longest active streak in college football, and it was no
fluke: 10 of those victories came by 25 points or more. Stanford
became the only team in college football history to win so many
games in a row so convincingly.
So here is this all-time streak of character and cruelty,
summarized:
Stanford 37, USC 35
The assault on college football history began with Stanford on a
low. The Cardinal were coming off a demoralizing 53-30 gut-punch
at Autzen Stadium, and they were a bit sloppy at home against the
Trojans. But Andrew Luck delivered in the final 68 seconds to set
up Nate Whitaker's game-winning field goal. The crowd stormed the
field. The win
streak had started.
Stanford 38, Washington State 28
The Cardinal weathered a
post-Oregon, post-USC letdown performance by managing to beat
the hapless Cougars at Stanford Stadium. True dominance, though,
would have to wait one more week.
Stanford 41, Washington 0
This is when "Character and
Cruelty" started showing up on the scoreboard. There was some
concern about the Cardinal's match-up at tough, rainy Husky
Stadium. But a long Luck touchdown run primed the pump for a
41-0 slaughter in Seattle.
Stanford 42, Arizona 17
This was a highly anticipated
match-up that Stanford turned into a mismatch in front of the
home faithful. An early Luck-to-Chris Owusu bomb put the
Cardinal in blowout mode. The Wildcats entered this game 7-1.
But the beatdown sent them into an 0-5 season-ending tailspin.
It was the beginning of the end for Wildcats coach Mike Stoops,
who was fired the following year.
Stanford 17, Arizona State 13
Each season presents at least one trap game against a decidedly
inferior opponent, and this was the 2010 Stanford version.
Harbaugh's sluggish squad just couldn't pull away from the Sun
Devils, but they secured victory thanks to some no-leg
Luck heroics. I'm sure that all bettors remember that the
Cardinal failed to cover the spread only because Anthony Wilkerson purposely fell down to drain the clock with his team
up four.
Stanford 48, Cal 14
With the narrow Arizona State
escape behind them, the Cardinal began their unprecedented
streak of dominance. Chapter One happened in Berkeley in one of
the most extreme Big Game humiliations of all time. Jamal
Rashad-Patterson was ejected for punching a Cal player before
kickoff; that simply ended up being foreshadowing for what
Stanford would do to the Bears as a team during the game. Luck barreled
over Sean Cattouse early and Harbaugh called off the dogs
at 45-0 in what was the most lopsided affair between the two
schools in 80 years.
Stanford 38, Oregon State 0
Perfection continued with yet
another abusive effort against a disinterested Oregon State
team. This win sealed Stanford's BCS status and set off
alumni celebrations all over the country.
Stanford 40, Virginia Tech 12 (Orange
Bowl)
This was quite possibly the
most impressive butchering of them all. The Cardinal sputtered
to 13-12 halftime lead before pillaging the Hokies in the second
half. Fittingly, this effort
was highlighted in the countdown post immediately
preceding this one.
Stanford 57, San Jose State 3
The 2011 season and David Shaw
era began auspiciously when Stanford put the hurt on the
Spartans on a warm Farm afternoon.
Stanford 44, Duke 14
For a brief second, the Blue
Devils put a scare in Stanford on the East Coast. But that's
when the Cardinal's propensity to floor the gas pedal in the
second half really ramped up. After 34 unanswered points and a
memorable Geoff Meinken stiff arm, the 25-plus point blowout win
streak had reached five.
Stanford 37, Arizona 10
Again, the Cardinal got out of
the gate slow. But yet again, it was only a matter of time
before they devoured the Wildcats and wore them down in the
second half. Leading only 16-10 at halftime, Luck and Levine Toilolo spearheaded a 21-0 second frame for laugher number six
in a row. The win came with a grave cost, though: Shayne Skov's
knee was torn apart in this game.
Stanford 45, UCLA 19
In the contest that will
forever be known as the Andrew Luck and Coby Fleener one-handed
catch game, Stanford outclassed the Bruins at home. A
game-opening goal line stand set the tone for the Cardinal's
seventh straight win by 25-plus.
Stanford 48, Colorado 7
Max Bergen's field goal block
and return for a touchdown sparked this spanking, which became
of a showcase of offensive perfection. Luck's final line: 26 for
33, 370 yards, three touchdowns. Eight beatdowns in a row, one
shy of the all-time record.
Stanford 44, Washington State 14
This one in the Palouse started
hairy, but ended up following a familiar tune once the Cougars
were worn down in the second half. Leading only 10-7 at the
break, Luck orchestrated a 34-point second half highlighted by
tight ends Coby Fleener, Levine Toilolo, and Zach Ertz. All
three were absolutely uncoverable. Stanford had tied a college
football record with nine straight 25-plus point
victories.
Stanford 65, Washington 21
David Shaw's squad saved its
most astounding performance for the record-breaker. The Cardinal
humiliated the Huskies in the trenches by amassing a Pac-12
record 446 yards on the ground. David DeCastro and Co. paved the
way for an attack that averaged over 10 yards per carry.
Shaw almost apologized for the lopsided score afterwards, saying
"you can't tell a runner not to run."
Stanford 56, USC 48 (3OT)
The dominant win streak ended
in the Coliseum, but Stanford was thrilled to leave Los Angeles
with a victory after one of the greatest games in college
football history. Luck led the escape in triple overtime in a
game that I'm sure you'll hear about later in this Top 40
countdown.
Stanford 38, Oregon State 13
The Cardinal's 17th consecutive win came over the Beavers in
gloomy Corvallis with the Ducks looming. Stanford stomped the
Beavers with another dominant second-half performance, but they
were jarred by Chris Owusu's season-ending neck injury.
Oregon 53, Stanford 30
I guess all great runs must end.
Previous
50-41. More
memorable moments - Loukas, Luck, and a phantom clipping
call
40. Fake out
- Luck stuns UW with a naked bootleg in 2010
39. Polls and
bowls - Stanford climbs into college football’s beauty
contests
38. Steamrolled
- Card run for 446 yards in 2011 beatdown of UW
37. Opening
act - 2009 win over Ducks launches a November to remember
36. Going
bowling - Loss to Sooners doesn't ruin first bowl game since
2001
35. "Shut up
and play football" - Cal jaws pregame, falls behind 45-0 in
2010
34. Look ma,
no legs - Luck throws a 52- yard dart while in free fall
33. Sit down
- Burfict's head leads to go-ahead TD, Wilkerson's ices W at ASU
32. Injury bug
- Despite multiple injuries, 2011 Card manage to rally
31. Whale
watching - Stanford starts recruiting at an elite level
30. Suck for
Luck - The media machine anoints the next football savior
29. Outta my
way - Luck bounces off Cattouse for a 50-yard run
28. 0 for 3
- Card post three shutouts in 2010 campaign
27. Laying the
wood - Luck lays out Wright
26. Concussed
- Owusu is knocked out of four games
25. Jumping
ahead - A 21-3 lead vanishes in Autzen in 2010
24. So close,
yet so far - Luck’s worst game costs Card 2009 Big Game
23. Run, Toby,
run - Gerhart takes over against the Irish
22. Xs and
Os… and Ys and Zs - Stanford toys with defensive
coordinators
21. “The
perfect football player” - Marecic makes purists weep
20. Rumor Mill
- Report: Harbaugh to take every NFL job
19. "What's
Your Deal?" - Stanford hands USC worst home beatdown ever
18. Continuity
Unknown to Mankind - David Shaw named Harbaugh's successor
17. Whitaker
Beats USC - Cardinal hand the Trojans another soul-crusher
16. We've Got
the Axe - Stanford wins first Big Game in six years
15. Return of
the Red Zone - Cardinal students populate the stadium in
force
14. Blown Away
- Stanford takes Virginia Tech to the woodshed in Orange Bowl
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