An Insider's Perspective from Kyle Bonagura
As detailed here on Wednesday, the rise of Stanford Football has led to a natural rise in the number of people covering the team. One of the best is Kyle Bonagura, who covers the Cardinal for CBSSports.com. He's a demon on Twitter, and if you're not already following him, do so now -- he goes from 0 to 140 characters in light speed. For this interview, though, he was a bit more expansive. So check, check, check it out y'all...
GoMightyCard:
Many people have said that this is the biggest game in the history of Stanford football, and it's difficult to argue against that. How big do you think this is for Oregon? How big is it for the Pac-12?
Many people have said that this is the biggest game in the history of Stanford football, and it's difficult to argue against that. How big do you think this is for Oregon? How big is it for the Pac-12?
Kyle Bonagura:
It's obviously a very big game for Oregon because the Pac-12 title is at stake, a Rose Bowl berth is likely at state, its long conference winning streak is at stake, it's important for recruiting, etc., but it definitely means more for Stanford. A win against Oregon and an Oklahoma State loss (against Oklahoma) more than likely means the team gets to play for the national title. For those same reasons, it's important for the conference, but I'd argue the Oregon-LSU game to open the year was bigger for the conference because Pac-12 fans could be unified in their support of one school vs an SEC team.
It's obviously a very big game for Oregon because the Pac-12 title is at stake, a Rose Bowl berth is likely at state, its long conference winning streak is at stake, it's important for recruiting, etc., but it definitely means more for Stanford. A win against Oregon and an Oklahoma State loss (against Oklahoma) more than likely means the team gets to play for the national title. For those same reasons, it's important for the conference, but I'd argue the Oregon-LSU game to open the year was bigger for the conference because Pac-12 fans could be unified in their support of one school vs an SEC team.
GMC:
The most obvious concern for Stanford has to be the blinding speed of the Oregon offense. What have you seen from the Cardinal defense this season that suggests they might do better than the fifty-two points they allowed last year in Eugene?
KB:
I spoke with Michael Thomas about that this week. He said just having played against the offense before has helped tremendously in preparation. Granted, there are only a handful of guys back from last year's defense, but being able to scheme against it again is definitely a positive. That said, the team needs to cut down on missed tackles and stay disciplined in its assignments against Oregon. Those are the keys.
GMC:
I suppose there must be a silver-lining to every cloud, and if we apply that to the Shayne Skov injury, you come up with the emergence of linebackers Jarek Lancaster and A.J. Tarpley. How impressed have you been with their play in Skov's absence?
I spoke with Michael Thomas about that this week. He said just having played against the offense before has helped tremendously in preparation. Granted, there are only a handful of guys back from last year's defense, but being able to scheme against it again is definitely a positive. That said, the team needs to cut down on missed tackles and stay disciplined in its assignments against Oregon. Those are the keys.
GMC:
I suppose there must be a silver-lining to every cloud, and if we apply that to the Shayne Skov injury, you come up with the emergence of linebackers Jarek Lancaster and A.J. Tarpley. How impressed have you been with their play in Skov's absence?
KB:
A lot of people I've talked to -- outside the program -- haven't been too impressed with those guys, but I'm not in that camp. They've both played well enough to push 5th-year senior Max Bergen back into a special teams-only role and have come up with big plays when they needed them. Consider neither were expected to be starting this year and the team ranks No. 3 nationally in rushing defense says a lot.
A lot of people I've talked to -- outside the program -- haven't been too impressed with those guys, but I'm not in that camp. They've both played well enough to push 5th-year senior Max Bergen back into a special teams-only role and have come up with big plays when they needed them. Consider neither were expected to be starting this year and the team ranks No. 3 nationally in rushing defense says a lot.
GMC:
There's a general feeling that Stanford will be able to adjust to the loss of wide receiver Chris Owusu, simply because he's missed so much game time over the past two seasons, but what about the loss of Zach Ertz? How will this impact the game?
KB:
Ertz is much, much bigger loss than Owusu. Simply put, Owusu hadn't really been living up to his billing anyway: there were dropped passes, not much to show on kickoff returns and his best plays came on reverses. I'm a big Ty Montgomery believer -- I think he fills right in and there is no drop off in terms of ability. Without Ertz, the team loses its 3-TE sets and arguably its best red zone target. Ryan Hewitt is doing some nice things to account for his loss, but that takes him away from what he'd been doing before. Geoff Meinken is great in running situations, but isn't the receiving threat out of the backfield that Hewitt is. The personel group of Ertz, Toilolo, Fleener, Hewitt, Taylor might have been the most versatile in college football -- they're still versatile without Ertz, but just not to the same degree.
Ertz is much, much bigger loss than Owusu. Simply put, Owusu hadn't really been living up to his billing anyway: there were dropped passes, not much to show on kickoff returns and his best plays came on reverses. I'm a big Ty Montgomery believer -- I think he fills right in and there is no drop off in terms of ability. Without Ertz, the team loses its 3-TE sets and arguably its best red zone target. Ryan Hewitt is doing some nice things to account for his loss, but that takes him away from what he'd been doing before. Geoff Meinken is great in running situations, but isn't the receiving threat out of the backfield that Hewitt is. The personel group of Ertz, Toilolo, Fleener, Hewitt, Taylor might have been the most versatile in college football -- they're still versatile without Ertz, but just not to the same degree.
GMC:
Stanford has always been a run-first offense, but this game might look a bit different. Oregon's defense has had success against the run while struggling at times against the pass. Does that suggest a big game for Andrew Luck?
KB:
I think the fact that it's the biggest regular-season game in Stanford history means the best Stanford player in history is destined for a big game. We can look at team stats until we're blue in the face, but in games like this they don't always mean much. Stanford's not going to change its identity for anyone. The final stats will probably show more passing than usual, but my guess is that'll be more of an indication of the type of game it'll be. Stanford hasn't had to pass late in games because it's been running out the clock. In a close game -- which I think everyone expects this to be -- they'll stay more balanced throughout.
I think the fact that it's the biggest regular-season game in Stanford history means the best Stanford player in history is destined for a big game. We can look at team stats until we're blue in the face, but in games like this they don't always mean much. Stanford's not going to change its identity for anyone. The final stats will probably show more passing than usual, but my guess is that'll be more of an indication of the type of game it'll be. Stanford hasn't had to pass late in games because it's been running out the clock. In a close game -- which I think everyone expects this to be -- they'll stay more balanced throughout.
GMC:
Finally, I'll ask you to look into your crystal ball. How do you expect this game to go, and what's your final score?
Finally, I'll ask you to look into your crystal ball. How do you expect this game to go, and what's your final score?
KB:
After much deliberation, I've concluded it won't be 9-6. Instead, I'll go with: Stanford 49, Oregon 45.
After much deliberation, I've concluded it won't be 9-6. Instead, I'll go with: Stanford 49, Oregon 45.
