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Stanford Cardinal College Football Preview

The Stanford Cardinal won a school-record 12 games last year and ended the 2010 season on a high note, picking up a 40-12 blowout victory over Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl.

Expectations are sky-high again entering a new year with star quarterback Andrew Luck returning to campus, but no one is quite sure how the loss of head coach Jim Harbaugh will affect the team as a whole.

Luck was expected to be the No. 1 pick overall in this year’s NFL draft, after completing 70.7 percent of his passes last year, finishing with 3,338 passing yards and 32 touchdowns. 

Stanford was second in the conference in scoring, putting up 40.3 points a game, trailing only Oregon who was the national leader in the category.  The Cardinal had a tremendously balanced attack, finishing second in the conference in rushing and third in passing.

Many believe that the school will take a step back this season even with the presence of the most talented signal-caller in the country, as the top two receivers are gone from a year ago, along with three key linemen from a unit that ranked second nationally in sacks allowed.

Junior Stepfan Taylor will take care of things in the rushing game, as he gained 1,137 yards on the ground and scored 15 touchdowns.  He is also a dangerous option in the passing game and will look to improve upon the 28 receptions he tallied a year ago.

The defense didn’t get much attention last year in a high-scoring conference, but ranked 10th nationally in surrendering just 17.4 points a game.  Stanford’s stop unit gained momentum at the end of the year, allowing just 56 points over the final five games.

Juniors Shayne Skov and Chase Thomas are the presumed leaders of the defense, making the team possess one of the best linebacking groups in the conference.  Skov led the team in tackles, while Thomas penetrating opposing backfield and paced the unit in tackles for loss.

The Cardinal will possess one of the nation’s best secondaries, but will likely not finish the season ranked third nationally like 2010.  Strong safety Delano Howell was last year’s playmaker in terms of interceptions and will be joined as the last line of defense with senior free safety Michael Thomas.

First-year head coach David Shaw will have a lot of pressure placed on him due to the recent success within the program.  Bettors will also be interested to see if he can continue the school’s success against Las Vegas.

Stanford has posted a 23-14 ATS mark over the last three years, including a 9-4 ATS mark at Stanford Stadium.