For the past twenty years I've had a poster of Easy Ed McCaffrey (1986-87; 1989-90) hanging in my classroom. It had been the central photograph adorning the 1990 Stanford Football schedule poster, but when I started teaching I simply cut out the photo, laminated it, and slapped it on the wall. It's hung in six different classrooms, and two weeks from now Ed will be looking down at the twenty-first group of students to learn at his feet.
The photo is from the 1989 Notre Dame game at Stanford. The photographer took his image from the back corner of the south end zone. McCaffrey has just gathered in a pass, and his right toe is dragging the turf just before he will fall out of bounds. It's a touchdown. A packed Stanford Stadium stretches out behind him, and a crystal blue California sky completes the scene. The Cardinal lost that game, but twenty-two years later, it doesn't matter.
It's fitting that that photograph is the image that always comes to my mind when I think of Ed McCaffrey, because it embodies everything he was as a receiver. He was smooth, athletic, and -- just like the poster -- constant. He was always there.
In terms of Stanford's all-time receiving records, McCaffrey ranks ninth in receptions, seventh in receiving yardage, and tied for third in 100-yard receiving games. His best season was as a senior in 1990 when he caught 61 balls for 917 yards and eight touchdowns (the 7th best single-season total in school history). He also had five 100-yard receiving games that year (4th best), including a monster game against Washington State (7 for 176). At the conclusion of that campaign, McCaffrey was named first-team All-Pac-10, first-team All-America, and first-team Academic All-America. McCaffrey has been inducted to the Stanford University Athletic Hall of Fame. There, and in my classroom, his accomplishments will be remembered for all-time.
Previously ranked:
#9 Owen Marecic
#10 Tommy Vardell
#11 Tank Williams
#12 Steve Stenstrom
#13 Riall Johnson
#14 Kailee Wong
#15 Eric Heitmann
#15 Chris Marinelli
#16 John Lynch
#17 Kwame Harris
#18 Chase Beeler
#19 Willie Howard
#20 Shayne Skov
#21 DeRonnie Pitts
#22 Anthony Bookman
#23 Sione Fua
#24 Richard Sherman
#25 John Hopkins
*My first thought was to try to come up with a list of the best Stanford football players of all-time, but I quickly realized that I'm not qualified. I've only been watching Stanford football since the fall of 1987, so I can't really comment intelligently on players who suited up before then. Sure, I know that Jim Plunkett belongs, but I know nothing about Randy Vataha. Sports Illustrated once named Ernie Nevers the greatest college football player of all-time, and that's certainly good enough for me, but how can I possibly rank him against players of a more modern era? So I decided to create a list of the best Stanford players that I've actually seen in my time as a fan, and since that's roughly twenty-five years, I'm calling it the Silver Squad. (Catchy, isn't it?) Anyway, I'd love to hear your own memories of these players, and I won't be offended if you argue about who should or should not have been included on this list. Enjoy.
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